Female sports journalists have always faced sexism. Social media has made it vicious and relentless
Veteran cricket journalist Anjali Doshi examines how social media has intensified harassment against female reporters over the past two decades. Starting her career 24 years ago covering an India–England match at Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium for the Afternoon Despatch & Courier, Doshi was one of only two women in the press box. Although she faced patronising attitudes from male colleagues, traditional print and television work operated in a relative bubble that insulated journalists from direct hostility, allowing her to cover multiple World Cups, edit for NDTV 24x7, and interview cricket icons like Shane Warne and Brian Lara.
That dynamic shifted drastically with the rise of metric-driven digital platforms. Returning to cricket this year to co-host Wisden’s show The Scoop, Doshi found that short video clips tailored for Instagram and TikTok stripped away context to chase impressions, drawing extreme hostility from online fans. When she addressed sensitive topics—such as critiquing cheerleading in the Indian Premier League and questioning Sunil Gavaskar’s remarks about Sunrisers Leeds signing Pakistani cricketer Abrar Ahmed—she faced a barrage of vicious, misogynistic abuse, illustrating how modern digital engagement fosters unrelenting toxicity.
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