When I first heard about TV Azteca’s Ines Sainz being sexually harassed
Published 7:00 am Wednesday, September 15, 2010
When I first heard about TV Azteca’s Ines Sainz being sexually harassed in the Jets locker room I didn’t give it a whole lot of thought. Professional sports stars aren’t exactly known for being particularly sensitive when it comes to the way they treat women and I figured that a woman who’s been a sports reporter for nearly a decade probably had a fairly thick skin. And, aside from a couple Tweets, Sainz didn’t seem to be making a very big deal about it. Turns out, she didn’t have to. A male colleague who witnessed the harassment reported it. According to Sainz he said, “‘Come with me, and I’m so sorry…It’s terrible. I feel sorry for you.’ So I tried to say, ‘Don’t worry, I can handle the situation.’ And that’s it. And I don’t even try to pay attention.”It sounds like Sainz was willing to drop it, and who could blame her? Have you ever pressed a sexual harassment charge? Despite what most of us enlightened people believe, it can be a career-ender. I imagine that’s especially true when your job is interviewing testosterone-fueled knuckleheads, paid millions to toss a ball around a field. Even though she didn’t pursue itthe Association for Women In Sports Media (AWSM) didbeing known as an uptight tattletale is probably going to at least impact her career a little bit. But after reading some of the things that have been written about Ines Sainz over the past few days (and I’m not going to give them the hits by linking), the locker-room buffoonery is probably the least insulting thing that’s happened to her since Sunday. And it’s not just random bloggers casting stones; witness yesterday’s’ “Today Show” appearance wherein Meredith Viera basically ignores the fact that these guys acted like pigs and instead repeatedly tries to get the very attractive Sainz to denounce the sassy photos of her floating around online. If you don’t feel like watching the whole thing, here’s a highlight: “But when you look at the website of your own network and your personal website and some of those pictureslooking at them now are you worried that those pictures get in the way of what you do? Is there a part of you that says, ‘I don’t want those pictures up anymore?'” Viera scolds. Sainz points out that her image is a big part of who she is in Mexico. She adds that been doing her job well for over nine years and has interviewed over 250 of the world’s top sports stars. Viera won’t be dissuaded and while shots of Sainz’s perky butt fill the screen, Viera insists, “those pictures are fairly provocative. Do you feel like those pictures get in the way of your professionalism?”Um, no. They’re not even nudesand even if they were, who cares? Meredith, let’s talk for a minutehow many even average-looking women do you see on TV doing anything? Unless you’re watching something like “The Biggest Loser,” women on TV have to be spectacularly good looking. Whether they’re calling lottery numbers or playing the dumb wife in a sitcom, female fug is forbidden (men get the occasional pass). But Viera seemingly won’t be satisfied until Sainz renounces her tight jeans and pledges to wear loose-fitting schmattes and a bag over her pretty face. Despite the hectoring, Sainz doesn’t biteor even seem annoyed. “Women like to be attractive. My way of dress is because I feel comfortable,” she shrugs. You know the network didn’t have Matt Lauer do this interview because it would’ve seemed sexist and shitty to have him asking her the same questions. So why is it okay to have another woman do it?
