The European Broadcasting Union's Media Guidelines for Athletics Broadcasting
Recently, the Korea Association of Athletics Federations (KAAF) has reportedly begun reviewing the establishment of guidelines to restrict the close-up filming of female athletes' bodies for sexual purposes.
In an interview with the Kyunghyang Shinmun, Ham Eun-ju, Secretary General of the Sports and Human Rights Institute, stated, "The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has continuously pointed out that female athletes should not be depicted in suggestive imagery," adding, "Before content that sexualizes female athletes spreads further, the Korea Media and Communications Commission and the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee must collaborate to create guidelines tailored to domestic circumstances."
To foster a more active discussion, we introduce two track and field broadcasting media guidelines from the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) (the original text and a machine-translated version are attached respectively).
The guidelines below are highly meaningful resources as they clearly explain the direction and philosophy regarding the perspective shift broadcasting entities must adopt for women's sports coverage.
First, <RAISING THE BAR — GUIDELINES FOR RESPECTFUL MEDIA COVERAGE IN WOMEN’S ATHLETICS> is a guideline jointly produced and released by the EBU and European Athletics on June 11, 2026.
It was enacted to prevent the sexualization of female athletes and to strengthen performance-centered reporting. Its core points include refraining from body close-ups and inappropriate slow-motion shots, restricting problematic camera angles such as low-angle shots, and framing visuals around technical skills and sports narratives.
<Reimagining Sport> is a report published by the EBU in 2021. To achieve gender equality in sports broadcasting, it proposes strategies to improve the media exposure of female athletes, expand female representation among commentators, and dismantle stereotypes through balanced reporting. Furthermore, the core of this report is to provide a practical broadcasting handbook based on specific success stories that public broadcasters can implement immediately.
The European Broadcasting Union's Media Guidelines for Athletics Broadcasting
Recently, the Korea Association of Athletics Federations (KAAF) has reportedly begun reviewing the establishment of guidelines to restrict the close-up filming of female athletes' bodies for sexual purposes.
In an interview with the Kyunghyang Shinmun, Ham Eun-ju, Secretary General of the Sports and Human Rights Institute, stated, "The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has continuously pointed out that female athletes should not be depicted in suggestive imagery," adding, "Before content that sexualizes female athletes spreads further, the Korea Media and Communications Commission and the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee must collaborate to create guidelines tailored to domestic circumstances."
To foster a more active discussion, we introduce two track and field broadcasting media guidelines from the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) (the original text and a machine-translated version are attached respectively).
The guidelines below are highly meaningful resources as they clearly explain the direction and philosophy regarding the perspective shift broadcasting entities must adopt for women's sports coverage.
First, <RAISING THE BAR — GUIDELINES FOR RESPECTFUL MEDIA COVERAGE IN WOMEN’S ATHLETICS> is a guideline jointly produced and released by the EBU and European Athletics on June 11, 2026.
It was enacted to prevent the sexualization of female athletes and to strengthen performance-centered reporting. Its core points include refraining from body close-ups and inappropriate slow-motion shots, restricting problematic camera angles such as low-angle shots, and framing visuals around technical skills and sports narratives.
<Reimagining Sport> is a report published by the EBU in 2021. To achieve gender equality in sports broadcasting, it proposes strategies to improve the media exposure of female athletes, expand female representation among commentators, and dismantle stereotypes through balanced reporting. Furthermore, the core of this report is to provide a practical broadcasting handbook based on specific success stories that public broadcasters can implement immediately.