Nobody Ever Took Me Seriously

Taking on the world, one sports game at a time

Photo by Markus Winkler on Unsplash

Nobody ever took me seriously when I started working. My first real job in reporting was as a sports reporter and news reporter in Ellsworth, Maine.

I was young, female, and kind. I was a little bit too polite. But my stories would get tons of comments, tons of fans, and win awards.

Still, I’d go out onto the basketball courts at high schools out of towns or tournaments, my giant camera strapped around my neck, notebook sticking out of my pocket. And I’d almost always get stopped by a principal or a coach or a referee while all the male reporters and just some male parents strolled right to the spot where I’d want to be.

I belonged there.

I’d show them my press pass or another male reporter—usually Hugh Bowden—would convince them that I was truly a reporter, and I’d be let onto the court, back pushed against a wall, camera to my face, reporting.

I never would have been allowed on there if it wasn’t for Jane Gross.