After switching my idea, I knew right away who I wanted to interview as part of Coming Out onto the Field.
At first, I aspired to interview a professional football player who is out, for instance, Robbie Rogers or Thomas Hitzlsperger. Unfortunately, that became the improbable (and not for the fact they didn't want to talk) but the busy schedule they held. On that note, I resolved to reach out to lower-level football players. As I sent out Twitter requests and emails to a group of agencies and management, I additionally did some digging if any coaching staff identified as LGBT+. During that time frame, I obtained interviews with referee Ryan Atkins and first-team coach Luke Tuffs of Ashford Town FC. However, on the other hand, I found it harder and harder to secure an interview with a football player. This was down to various factors such as the short time frame I had and the complications of passing through agencies and management whilst being a student journalist.
In addition to attaining interviews that are at the heart of the football pitch, I also wanted to talk to researchers who have studied masculinity and homophobia in sports. This led to contacting American sociologist Eric Anderson and Academic Course Leader and Senior Lecturer for Physical Education Rachael Bullingham. Both of which provided me with their view on the subject and a better understanding of each complexity.
With a round-up of discussions already in place, I sensed something was missing. I knew I wanted to speak to someone who reported about LGBT+ athletes and, luckily after, my interview with Eric Anderson, he, recommended contacting Cyd Zeigler (Co-founder of Outsports). After a string of emails in quick succession, we arranged an interview in which we spoke about the start of Outsports and the reporting side of athletes coming out. Finally, I got in touch with Football v Homophobia, a campaign that challenges discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity and expression at all levels in football. Being the first interview, I secured, I was lucky to talk to Beatrice Thirkettle - who's part of the Youth Panel - about FvH in general, the importance of education and fan aspect.
As I produce Coming Out onto the Field - an investigation into the complexities of football players coming out - I was still missing the fan perspective. To attain a mixture of responses, I considered the best option was to create a survey in which I shared on social media and emailed to LGBT+ football support groups; providing over 40 responses and counting.
Overall, with interviews across the board, I believe they'll bring the story together at which I plan to share in the next coming days. To find out more click here.
(Photos courtesy of Cyd Zeigler and Beatrice Thirkettle)
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