Two years ago, News Corp made a commitment to transform its coverage, tone and all round approach to coverage of women’s and gender diverse sport and its visibility in the media.
We wanted to address the under representation of some of the nation’s greatest athletes by giving them regular presence in all our platforms.
We wanted to become an ally to the athletes and governing bodies, create communities in which fans and sceptics could co-exist and learn more about some of the best talent Australia and the world of women’s sport has to offer.
In dedicating significantly more resources and time to the coverage of women’s sport, we have in turn adapted our ways of thinking.
Data clearly shows us that Australians want more coverage, opinions and in-depth articles on women’s sport.
HOW FAR WE HAVE COME
For the last 24 months we have closely monitored the data from our audiences and the response has been staggering.
In 2022 we delivered a 54% increase in women’s sport content across digital, social, video and print. This resulted in an 83% increase in the consumption of the content.
Our subscriber base spent 10,000 hours reading and engaging with our coverage with netball, AFLW, NRLW and investigations yielding the biggest returns.
We uncovered serious incidents of alleged abuse when Lisa De Vanna lifted the lid on the toxic culture within the Matildas.
We exposed the truth about what really ended Liz Cambage’s Opals career in a major investigation after obtaining video of the former WNBA star assaulting Nigerian players and racially vilifying them.
We revealed the dire financial situation at Netball Australia, pushed for answers as the league faced economic ruin and didn’t shy away from allegations of racial issues being rife within the sport.
We have led the discussion and coverage of trans athletes in sport and laid bare the horrors of abuse and toxic cultures across multiple sports including hockey, swimming and triathlon.
Our coverage has not and will not discriminate.
In a year which will see Australia play host to the women’s Football World Cup, the Diamonds battle for glory at the netball World Cup in South Africa and athletes in their 100s enter the final year of preparations for Paris 2024 Olympics, we are more committed than ever to ensure women’s sport has the coverage it deserves.
INSIGHT SPORT will not replace 2022’s 54 percent increase in coverage it will bolster it.
A monthly themed digital print edition, online destination and 100s of articles a year will be added to our already wide ranging content on offer.
We want to create a bridge to connect athletes with their fans. We want to assist in breaking down taboos, improve standards across codes from grassroots to elite and, most importantly, we want to let the athletes tell their stories and weigh in on the big issues that matter to them.
“Ten years from now it will be less about something being an ‘inclusive moment for women’, we will just be athletes, men or women. It will just be about performance.”
WHAT IS INSIGHT SPORT?
In the inaugural month INSIGHT SPORT will be a weekly edition covering four themes: BODY, PRIDE, EQUALITY and the POWER issue for International Women’s Day.
A guest editor will act as an ambassador for each edition with Australian Olympic gold medalist Libby Trickett leading our maiden issue.
In the coming weeks we will hear from netball and AFLW superstar Ash Brazill about why she didn’t want to be the first openly gay netballer in Australia and the private battles she overcame to be her true self.
Megan Schutt reveals her personal fury at being told as a young player that women’s cricket had “coerced” her into being a lesbian, as she calls on Cricket Australia to lift its game in promoting inclusivity.
Charlotte Caslick and Sally Fitzgibbons discuss pay parity, what it means, why their sports are leading the way level and what the rest of the country needs to do.
On International Women’s Day we will name and celebrate the top 100 people of influence in women’s sport and call on leading sport CEO’s to commit to five key improvements they will oversee in the next 12 months.
“There’s so much push to move forward and to step up and be equal,” says swimming champion Janelle Pallister. “It won’t be about women and it won’t be about men, just everyone harmoniously together.”
We are committed to telling these important stories with depth and detail, so while our newspaper readers will get access to our best content the complete stories will be available in full via our websites.
Originally published as Insight Sport: News Corp’s newest commitment to women and gender diverse sport
