Abstract

Title IX began the change of integrating women's sports into universities, but it was up to each university's athletic administration, external media sources, and public relations practitioners to determine how female athletes and sports were supported and publicized. In 1976, Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah hired Ellen Larsen as its first female sports information director responsible for women's sports. Through her 19 years as a sports information director at BYU, Larsen was an advocate for her athletes and helped pave the way for future female athletic administration roles. While there is plenty of literature on male sports information directors, literature on female sports information directors is thin. Even less has been published on pioneer women in this role. This paper will tell the story of Ellen Larsen, BYU's first female sports information director, and describe her pioneering impact in the publicizing of women's athletics at BYU from 1976 to 1995.

Degree

MA

College and Department

Fine Arts and Communications; Communications

Rights

https://lib.byu.edu/about/copyright/

Date Submitted

2023-06-12

Document Type

Thesis

Handle

http://hdl.lib.byu.edu/1877/etd12828

Keywords

Sports Information Director, Sports Media, Women in Sports, Title IX, Women's Collegiate Athletics

Language

english

Included in

Communication Commons

Share

COinS