The concept of sports journalism shouldn’t be a tricky one to wrap your head around, right? It’s a pretty straightforward pursuit. Reporting on the amazing wealth of talent the industry has to offer is the prime objective. That being said, it is also important to showcase and highlight some of the unfortunately overlooked areas of sport. When it comes to motorsport, one such branch of the offering is the category of female drivers. It’s no secret that the need of the hour is to uplift female drivers and have more representation amongst them in the most elite series around the globe. And for all intents and purposes, F1 should be taking charge of this.

When we say F1, we don’t just mean Formula One management. It must be a concerted effort by all the stakeholders involved, and the single most important pillar of this movement is the media. Media coverage, may it be on paper or on air, is the only way to get these drivers the attention and recognition they deserve. Granted, the sport has been moving progressively towards this goal. However, the path becomes sluggish thanks to certain irresponsible and distasteful journalistic moves.

F1 publication under the cosh after controversial W series article

Recently, a Twitter user pointed out a feature in the BusinessF1 magazine that clearly goes on to show the sorry state of affairs that sports journalism sometimes finds itself in.

Rather than emphasizing on the amazing track work done by the W series and its drivers, as per the user, Darran Shepherd, the magazine ended up “bemoaning [the fact that] none of the drivers were pimped out to F1 drivers. Splitting the article with a double page spread gallery of grid girl photos doubling down on the bullshit.”

The centerpiece of their article was this appalling quote, “S*x sells because it attracts attention.”

The clear lack of integrity, thought and purpose behind the article was exposed by the photos displayed along with the piece. Both, former-NASCAR driver Danica Patrick [the first and only female driver to win an IndyCar race] and Susie Wolff [a successful Formula E team principal] have contributed more than just photoshoots to their legacy in the sport as women.

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Naturally, the fans weren’t pleased. They showcased their outburst at this absurd publication on Twitter.

Fans blast magazine for suggesting W series drivers could’ve sold themselves better

The title of the article [Could W Series have sold itself better?] seem to give away the flawed logic of the publication when it comes to the promotion of female racing drivers. That being said, fans were quick to swarm the social media platform and let their dissatisfaction be known.

Let’s take a look at just a few of the fan reactions to BusinessF1’s journalistic gaffe.

The folks on Twitter also pointed out another disturbing aspect of the entire feature.

All in all, the general sentiment of the fans was one of disgust and disappointment, and who can blame them?

Even famous names of the motorsport media world called the magazine out for this. The F1 man, Vincenzo Landino, blasted the publication for what he called ‘trash’.

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In the balance of things, do you think F1 and the motorsport industry, in general, are doing enough to promote inclusivity? Or do the actions of some organizations wipe out all the good work done in the past?