I have zero time for commercial talkback radio. Just not my thing. And truth be told, I’d rather hammer a rusty nail through my frontal lobe than listen to the puerile drivel of radio host Marty Sheargold on any given day.
But my ears pricked up as the news picked up on his on-air rant this week targeting the Matildas, Australian women’s soccer team.
In case you missed it, Sheargold compared the elite team to “Year 10 girls”. “All the infighting and all the friendship issues, ‘The coach hates me and I hate bloody training and Michelle’s being a bitch’,” he said on-air.
“Now, I’m sorry to undermine the whole sport, but that’s what I think of it so you can stick it up your arse.”.
Sheargold also said he’d “rather hammer a nail through the head of (his) penis” than watch the Matildas play.
Unsurprisingly, there’s been a noisy public outcry since Sheargold made his harmful and clueless remarks. The Triple M network issued a standard order PR missive, Sheargold made a public non-apology and then late on Wednesday, he agreed to “part ways” with the network after Football Australia and Matildas players condemned the disparaging comments he made.
But his stepping down will only go ‘part way’ toward the bigger issue here.
Because Sheargold’s denigrating remarks don’t just reveal his personal and comedic deficits.
More concerning is that his comments directly imply that women in elite sport are somehow inferior to men, casually normalise demeaning and harmful attitudes in mainstream media towards women, and also raise serious questions about why men like Sheargold even have public platforms to amplify their misguided and misogynistic views to prime-time mainstream audiences in the first place.
In fact, Sheargold’s comments tap a deeper, darker seam in our country, and are symptomatic of a chronic and pervasive issue in Australian sport. They’re a reminder that despite hard-won efforts by multiple sporting codes over many decades to advance the recognition, participation and rights of women in Australian sport, entrenched misogyny and overt sexism continue to be part of our accepted cultural status quo toward female athletes.
In any case, the fact that Sheargold’s schoolyard schtick was levelled at a team like the Matilda’s is ironic. They are, of course, the elite sportswomen who not long ago captivated the nation with their semi-final appearance at the 2023 FIFA World Cup, when their match against England smashed records to become the – (yes, THE) – most watched television program, sport or otherwise (including men’s sports), since 2001.
Indeed, in the past few years, the Matildas have risen to become global symbols of power, progress and sporting excellence and are extraordinary and aspirational role models to women and girls (and men and boys) the world over.
But instead of celebrating their achievements, Sheargold reduced these phenomenal accomplishments to dumb fodder for crude humor, reinforcing the outdated notion that women’s sports are inferior, less entertaining or just ‘less than’ mens sports.
After the Sheargold incident former Australian Olympian and Hockeyroo player Ambrosia Malone shared on social media: “I honestly don’t know what is wrong with the world … I heard this on the radio yesterday in prime time (5:30pm) on the way to training and all I could think about was the young girls sitting in the car with their parents, on the way to or from their own training sessions hearing this. I’m sure many of them would have been hurt and confused … I was in disbelief.”
“This is apparently acceptable on mainstream afternoon radio??? HOW??”
Malone’s reaction highlights the psychological harm such blatant sexism can cause to all young people who hear their role models being undermined, and reminds us that every person with a platform in the public sphere has a responsibility to the very public they serve. Public figures play a powerful role in shaping societal perceptions about gender in any domain.
We must demand better role modeling from those with public platforms to ensure that future generations of women and girls see themselves as valued and respected contributors to Australian sport.
The role of the media and of every member of the public are also crucial to this cause. Social media is one perch but prime-time public platforms should be earned. So those who don’t have the decency or merit or smarts to be there should go find a hammer and some nails and build themselves a new one. Way out of town.