Feminist media scholar

Jennifer McClearen headshot, white woman with shoulder length brown hair and brown eyes in a white blazer shown from the shoulders up facing forward smiling. Blurred image of the words “fighting visibility” from her book cover in th

Jennifer McClearen is a feminist media scholar studying the cultural production of difference in popular media with a specific interest in sports. She is an Assistant Professor of Sports, Media, and Culture at the University of Texas at Austin where she teaches courses on identity and representation in entertainment media industries.

FIGHTING VISIBILITY

Sports Media and Female Athletes in the UFC

"A scathing critique of the exploitation that defines the relationship of the UFC to its women fighters, Fighting Visibility fills a hole in the study of sports. Never has this subject been explored with the depth and clarity that we have here. A necessary and groundbreaking read. It makes the point with crystal clarity: visibility and equity are not the same thing."--Dave Zirin, sports editor, The Nation

Scholar Spotlight: Jennifer McClearen

Interview by Samantha N. Sheppard, Associate Co-Editor of Outreach and Equity for JCMS

Cover of JCMS journal with names of contributors. Top half in white, bottom half in purple.

Jennifer McClearen: “It is a thrilling time to be a media scholar who examines the cultural politics of sports because of the ways sports media can spur national conversations about issues that impact our culture more broadly. Sports media is one gathering space where people of vastly different backgrounds, tastes, and interests come together. It is a space where live TV is still thriving, and time-shifting is far less common than other forms of media. Sports media is a cultural space where democratic debate still circulates, so athlete activists have the capacity to become particularly meaningful agents of change.”