Kate on Sports: Kate on Women and Muscle
This vlog is by Kate Troescher, a student at California, whose show discusses sports news and related issues. The vlog starts with images of previous episodes sliding into view while playing “Start Me Up� by the Rolling Stones. Then the title, “Kate on Sports� appears. The vlog uses a mid shot frame and a talk to camera narrative. The focus is on Kate who is sitting in front of a desk, her Mac visible with the title of the episode’s topic. Next to the computer is a Cal hat, facing directly toward the viewer. The backdrop is a bulletin board covered in pictures, letters, pins, and other miscellaneous items. The vlog starts with Kate flexing her bicep for the camera. The feel is very informal. The topic of this show is women and muscle. It discusses the stereotypes and the social acceptance issues in a Q &A format.
I chose this vlog because it was a female talking about sports, which is already not the norm. Most sports broadcasters are male and while there are a few women in the field, they tend to be very attractive and have very little camera time comparatively. Kate talks about the social acceptance of female body builders while competing with the super thin body image. How Hollywood stars such as J Lo and Catherine Zeta Jones have made it more acceptable to have curves and a more “normal� body. But, others such as Lindsay Lohan and Hillary Duff are sporting the close to anorexic frame. These two extremely different body images create a conflict in what is “acceptable.� I found it very interesting in both a feminist aspect but also in a non typical social aspect. I thought that the topic was well prepared for and honestly, Kate is easily above par with the current female sports broadcasters. I did notice that she talked in more lay woman terms. She gave sports news in a way that those who didn’t quite understand sports would be able to get the jist which, tends to be more of a female audience. Overall, I really enjoyed her presentation.