MELISSA BLOCK, Host:
Veteran sports reporter Andrea Kremer joins me to talk about the climate for women journalists in sports. She's a sideline reporter with NBC's "Sunday Night Football," and she started her TV career at ESPN back in 1989 as the network's first female correspondent. Andrea, welcome to the program.
ANDREA KREMER: Thanks, Melissa, great to chat with you.
BLOCK: Does this incident to you seem to be a reflection on a bigger issue of how women sports reporters are treated?
KREMER: You know, women have earned their positions. I've always maintained there's not a sports gene that only men possess, and it doesn't always have to be about why they are there. It should be, in my opinion, about what do they contribute to a telecast or to a broadcast.
BLOCK: Have you heard this over the years, Andrea, that you can't possibly know the game as a woman if you haven't played it?
KREMER: They were buying me books. They were supporting my interest. And believe me, Melissa, I hear this all the time. Oh, did you have brothers? Is that why you like sports? No, I like sports because I just have loved it my whole life. But no, it's not something that's just endemic to men. Women can love it and be knowledgeable about it, just as men can.
BLOCK: Do you think there's a particular hurdle for women who are sideline reporters, that they have to justify their presence in a way that male sideline reporters would not be questioned?
KREMER: But you're there to - for your observational skills and to report, and there is reporting that can be done. See, I think that's the key, Melissa, is I think with the role of sideline reporter, the word reporter gets lost.
BLOCK: I think we've all heard, though, inane questions from sideline reporters, both men and women. And I wonder, when you hear those questions coming specifically from a woman reporter, do you kind of wince and say, boy, that's just going to reflect badly on all of us, make my job even harder?
KREMER: And look, your 10th-degree fallback should always be: What adjustments do you need to make, coach? It's not a compelling question, but if you give something specific, you know, for the most part you're going to get something usable that you want to say on air.
BLOCK: What do you think it would take to have more women in the booth or in the studio? There are some now, but mostly women are on the sidelines.
KREMER: You need to work from the ground up. You need to pay your dues, and you need to earn those stripes. I mean, I would not be in favor of just throwing a woman in the booth if she had never done it before. And I think that that's something that's really important to keep in mind.
BLOCK: Andrea Kremer is sideline reporter with NBC's "Sunday Night Football." Andrea, thanks very much.
KREMER: It's a pleasure, Melissa. Thank you so much.
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)
MICHELE NORRIS, Host:
It's ALL THINGS CONSIDERED.