Gender Parity in Media Coverage of Athletes wıth Disabilities in Turkey

This study examines the portrayal of female athletes with disabilities in a Turkish daily sports newspaper. A content analysis was conducted on 486 articles published in a popular sports newspaper between the years of 2007 and 2011. Female athletes with disabilities had less media coverage than male athletes with disabilities in Turkish sports media. While male athletes with disabilities were depicted more in team sports, female athletes were depicted mostly in individual sports. However, the individual sports female athletes participated in this study were sports that are considered ‘masculine’. Female athletes with disabilities were depicted as passive in most of the articles published. Disability was visible and both male and female athletes were mostly depicted in wheelchairs which reinforced stereotypical perception of disability. Articles also focused on achievement of athletes with disabilities