ABOUT THIS ENTRY

"Most Days" is a video essay written by Gracie Leavitt, produced by Audrey Martin and performed by Candace Parker as well as inspired, conceived and supported by numerous women and allies across Bleacher Report, Turner Sports, and the sports landscape at large. It was created to mark the conclusion of Women's History Month by insisting that the collective, inclusive power of women, girls, and allies be recognized every single day of the year.

With energy and passion, "Most Days" complements all the coverage of individual accomplishments (which no doubt deserve enthusiastic recognition, but which can unintentionally invisibilize the ways in which women score so many big wins together). The essay does this through a powerfully-cadenced ode to 2020-21's history made by elite athletes and up-and-comers alike both in the U.S. and worldwide who have used their voices to make sports make a difference.

How does this represent “Excellence in Engagement”?

We know content about girls and women in and around sports is frequently met with online hate speech. "Most Days" engages past that, reaching out to those who need this message and who need to see themselves reflected.

It was important to our team to share "Most Days" not only on HighlightHER -- our women's sports vertical -- but on all of our channels to increase engagement and awareness. That said, especially meaningful to our team were the responses from the HighlightHER audience. That audience specifically engaged in a meaningful way, tagging some of the women featured in the piece and validating the veracity of the message.

"Most Days" says the unsaid. The affirming comments, shares, and responses of all kinds demonstrate that people are more than ready for the truth of our collective power to be reflected in the world's storytelling. We can be an inseparable force if only media portrayals stop tearing us apart and taking us away from each other. The message belongs to us all, and in that collective web, we can engage with each other and in the fight for equality.

Objective: While girls and women in sports have historically been dramatically underrepresented in media, too often the content that does feature them hypes the "firsts and onlys" to the exclusion of stories that show our connected and collective impacts. Over-focus on firsts can be painful and erasive; over-focus on the-one-and-only can feed into a "there can only be one" narrative that pits women against each other. All this can be especially true during Women's History Month and on International Women's Day, when brands clamor to cover female stars who—over the course of the other 11 months or the other 364 days—typically go relatively unseen and unheard across much of culture, but especially in sports.

"Most Days" goes farther and dives deeper; celebrating the groundbreaking and systemic victories scored by and for women in sports. The essay illuminates how change here inspires change there, and how progress makes more possible for so many others inside and outside of sports.

Strategy & Execution: While girls and women in sports have historically been dramatically underrepresented in media, too often the content that does feature them hypes the "firsts and onlys" to the exclusion of stories that show our connected and collective impacts. Over-focus on firsts can be painful and erasive; over-focus on the-one-and-only can feed into a "there can only be one" narrative that pits women against each other. All this can be especially true during Women's History Month and on International Women's Day, when brands clamor to cover female stars who—over the course of the other 11 months or the other 364 days—typically go relatively unseen and unheard across much of culture, but especially in sports.

"Most Days" goes farther and dives deeper; celebrating the groundbreaking and systemic victories scored by and for women in sports. The essay illuminates how change here inspires change there, and how progress makes more possible for so many others inside and outside of sports.

Results: "Most Days" garnered over 1.4 million impressions across Bleacher Report's social channels while reaching fans on Turner Sports' award-winning linear productions of NBA on TNT and beyond.

Production

Bleacher Report, Turner Sports

Credits

Grace Leavitt
Writer, QC
Bleacher Report

Audrey Martin
Senior Digital Producer
Bleacher Report

Rachel Kodner
Video EditorBark Bark / Freelance

Candace Parker
On-Air TalentTurner Sports