Outrage As BBC Pays Male Commentator 10 Times More Than His Female Counterpart

Outrage As BBC Pays Male Commentator 10 Times More Than His Female Counterpart
Lauren Croft
By Lauren Croft



Yet another news story has emerged which proves the gender pay gap is still kicking and screaming – with tennis commentator Martina Navratilova discovering she is paid at least 10 times less than her male counterpart.

According to SBS, Wimbledon television commentator John McEnroe is paid over 10 times more than his fellow (female) commentator, Martina Navratilova – who has just discovered the extreme pay difference and is not happy.

McEnroe’s pay packet is between AU $270,000 and $361,000 whilst Navratilova told Panorama she is only paid around AU $27,000 for the same job, and has hit out at the BBC.

“It was a shock because John McEnroe makes at least STG150,000 … I get about STG15,000 for Wimbledon and unless John McEnroe’s doing a whole bunch of stuff outside of Wimbledon he’s getting at least 10 times as much money”, she said.

Navratilova added that she was told she was getting paid a comparable amount to men doing the same job as her, adding that she obviously wasn’t “told the truth.”

“(I’m) not happy. It’s shocking. It’s still the good old boys network. The bottom line is that male voices are valued more than women’s voices.”

Navratilova was crowded Wimbledon ladies champion nine times, whilst McEnroe was only the Wimbledon champion three times.

McEnroe’s pay was revealed in a list of BBC’s top earning talent last year, SBS reported earlier this week.

Unsurprisingly, Navratilova said her agent will ask for more money for future roles with BBC.

However, BBC Sport told Panorama “John and Martina perform different roles in the team, and John’s role is of a different scale, scope and time commitment.”

“They are simply not comparable. John’s pay reflects all of this, gender isn’t a factor.”

McEnroe appeared approximately 30 times for the BBC at Wimbledon last year whilst Navratilova appeared 10 times. But does that justify being paid just a tenth of her male counterpart’s pay?

In 2018, unequal pay should no longer be an issue. That’s why, this year, we’re hosting Changing the Ratio, a bold, home-grown initiative designed to drive diversity, inclusion and the promotion of women in Australia’s advertising, marketing and media landscape.

Sound good? Grab tickets here while they last! We’ve got some killer keynote speakers, and attendees will walk away with practical tools and case studies, not to mention game-changing ideas.

Changing the Ratio will be held on May 28 in Sydney – for all the other deets, head to the website. See you there!




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