A TikTok user has leveled accusations at ESPN for ‘sexualizing’ her and a friend when they were featured during a broadcast at the 2024 Men’s College World Series championships. On the night of June 24, the Tennessee Volunteers emerged victorious over the Texas A&M Aggies with a close score of 6-5 in Game 3, seizing their first national title at the MCWS championships. Amid the excitement, baseball enthusiasts Annie and her friend attended the game at Charles Schwab Field in Omaha, Nebraska, where they decided to enjoy some ice creams in the sweltering heat.
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As they tackled their rapidly melting ice creams, ESPN’s cameras zoomed in on them and commentator Karl Ravech remarked, “You gotta get it before it melts and it’s liquid.” The coverage didn’t stop there; another commentator added, “A night like tonight you’re working fast.” This particular footage of the women indulging in their ice creams quickly became a sensation online, prompting Annie to express her disapproval on social media over the attention it garnered.
“20 seconds dedicated with commentary to us eating our ice cream, we all knew what direction that video was going to head in,” Annie explained in a five-minute TikTok video. She lamented the subsequent unwanted attention, saying, “And lo and behold the creeps of TikTok got a hold of it because we woke up the next morning getting compared to the ‘Hawk Tuah’ girl – no shade to her, girl, do whatever.” She revealed that the choice to buy ice creams was simply to stay cool, but the situation escalated as they melted ‘comically fast’.
Annie highlighted an ongoing problem: “What’s funnier than a woman eating an ice cream cone or eating a hot dog or something that can be overly sexualized,” she stated, criticizing ESPN for leaving enough ambiguity in their coverage which, according to her, “just opens the door for f***ing creeps to come in and do whatever they want with it.” She brought up her frustration about the pervasive sexism in sports, comparing her experience to the scrutiny Taylor Swift faced when attending NFL games. “I don’t have the relevance of Taylor Swift,” Annie noted, “But what has been proved time and time again is that women just can’t exist in these spaces without something being commented on or being drawn attention to. We just wanted to enjoy a baseball game and it was 100 degrees and so god forbid we eat some ice cream.”
Annie called on ESPN, a network co-owned by The Walt Disney Company and Hearst Communications, to make sports environments where women feel safe and welcome. “We can’t eat in peace, we can’t wear clothes in peace, we literally can’t do anything without it being sexualized and absolutely turned into something way out of context,” she argued.
Her critique on TikTok has resonated widely, now with over 5.7 million views, and has sparked a broader conversation among viewers. Comments range from empathetic to supportive, with one user saying, “I’m so sorry this happened to you. My friend and I were eating hotdogs and were put on the Jumbotron for an uncomfortable amount of time.” Another shared, “My husband and I saw this and both thought it was terrible immediately. Like why can’t they just let you eat an ice cream in peace.” A third chimed in with support, “Good for you for standing up for yourself. I hope this inspires many others to stand up for themselves and others who are in similar situations.”