The New College Athletics Media Packages and the Effect on Title IX

In this paper I examine gender equity in collegiate athletics and specifically the impact of the recent explosion in the amount of money flowing to colleges and universities from new media contracts and the effect that money will have on women’s sports. I discuss Title IX’s history, implementation, critiques and clarifications as it applies to college athletics. I also discuss the statistics that will help understand where women currently stand within the culture of athletics. Bridging the two topics of gender equity and money in sports, I will also discuss briefly the evolution of college athletics and its relationship with television and how television has helped create the emphasis on men’s sports. Lastly, I will discuss court decisions that have helped women pursue equity in college athletics. Because of the changing landscape within college athletics at the present moment, the conclusions drawn in this paper are, to a degree, uncertain and speculative. More definitive answers regarding many of the topics this paper discusses will be determined in the coming years, but based on history, Title IX will remain a forceful and needed asset for women as they continue to strive to close the gap in college athletics