Sports have always been one of the few things that unite big groups of people. But, in the new age of short attention spans, sports must rebrand themselves and use new approaches to keep fan engagement high. The Women's National Basketball League is a perfect example of this, with teams connecting with fans and expanding opportunities through several social media platforms (Darvin, 2024). The WNBA season ended this past October. As New York Liberty celebrates its first championship win in 48 years, I want to shed light on the figure who completely altered the fan engagement with the team, the one and only Ellie the Elephant. The New York Liberty's mascot, Ellie the Elephant, represents the rebranding of women's basketball. As sports representation becomes more inclusive and diverse, especially as more women join the field, a cultural shift is occurring.
Growing up, I witnessed the impact mascot’s foster as they engage with fans. From when I was in middle school and represented the Huskies, to transitioning into high school where I represented the Lancers, there was a sense of identity as a team and as a fan that resonated with the team's mascot.
People deeply connect with teams and find pride in things, such as the team's colors and mascot. Being in Philadelphia, I find it amazing to see people's deeply rooted connections to sports teams such as the Philadelphia Eagles and the Philadelphia Flyers. It's impressive to witness Gritty's ever growing love and impact on society, given that many people who aren’t Flyers fans still love Gritty. Originally, I am from Massachusetts and don’t think I've ever followed the Flyers. Still, on my computer (next to my Boston Bruins logo) I have a sticker of Gritty because I believe he is a hilarious character.
Most sports mascots, like Gritty, are either male or gender-neutral, reflecting the male-dominated nature of the sports industry. Ellie the Elephant brings pride to New York Liberty by introducing a feminine mascot to an industry shaped by male dominance. Ellie has redefined fan engagement with her ability to attract attention. This connects to Andi Zeisler’s principle that feminist pop culture involves producing and representing progressive media created by women (Zeisler, 2008). Ellie’s lighthearted yet powerful personality makes her a perfect symbol to start important conversations about gender equity. She presents feminist ideals in a way that feels entertaining showing a new form of feminism that has a place everywhere, especially in sports and pop culture.
Ellie doesn’t only add a feminine presence to women’s sports. She reshapes cultural narratives by highlighting femininity as a form of empowerment. Her design could have fallen into a stereotypical portrayal of women, playing into the male gaze Zeisler critiques for reducing women to objects of male desire (Zeisler, 2008). Instead, Ellie’s style combines streetwear with feminine characteristics while preserving a boss-level energy that gives her confidence and style. She has reinvented what it means to be a woman in sports, challenging traditional expectations of a mascot, and through embracing her identity, Ellie becomes a meaningful cultural icon.
This is even more powerful in the digital age as mascots like Ellie the Elephant use social media to amplify their impact. Social media and meme culture are critical for fan engagement, allowing Ellie to reach out to fans worldwide and develop a shared culture that brings people from diverse communities together. As much as I love basketball, I wasn’t actively following the WNBA this season, but as Ellie memes started to appear on my TikTok and X (formerly Twitter) feeds, I started watching games and following her, turning my interest into active participation (Pumpkin Spice, 2024). This resonates with Limor Shifman’s idea that memes aren’t just for fun but instead are part of culture and significantly impact society (Shifman, 2014). Ellie is featured in a variety of memes and it’s often difficult to distinguish when fans are admiring her or mocking her. For example, the praise concerning her dancing skills can be viewed as either genuine or as a parody demonstrating Poe’s Law. (Shifman, 2014). Poe’s Law suggest that unless made obvious it’s difficult to tell the difference between a joke about extreme ideas and how genuinely they are expressed.
Nonetheless, Ellie’s influence extends beyond entertainment and transforms people who casually engage with the content of the New York Liberty into active fans. Women’s sports have managed to increase fan engagement and target a younger audience. This past season alone, there was a 64 percent increase in New York Liberty game attendance (Evans, 2024). Ellie's cultural influence demonstrates how gender stereotypes in sports are changing.
Critics may question whether Ellie the Elephant significantly impacted women’s sports or if the mascot is mainly for entertainment. However, Ellie’s unique design and feminist symbolism prove she is more than a social media meme. Her unapologetic feminine personality allows Ellie to draw attention on and off the court. Her ability to appeal to such a broad audience reinforces her ability to increase fan involvement and awareness of women’s basketball.
More than just a character to represent a team Ellie has become a cultural icon. She goes beyond the traditional toles of a mascot to appeal to a broad audience. Her efforts may not completely change society's views of women’s sports, but they have made significant steps towards a more diverse and inclusive future for women athletes. As women's sports become popular, the industry must continue shedding positive light on models like Ellie. Her influence is critical for society in driving a feminist movement. Ellie the Elephant is becoming more than just a mascot as she strongly represents how women influence sports culture and society.
References
Darvin, L. (2024, June 3). Angel Reese, Caitlin Clark and Cameron
Brink bring WNBA fan
engagement to New Heights. Forbes.
Evans, D. (2024, October 21). The Best Party in New York is only
getting bigger. The Cut.
https://www.thecut.com/article/wnba-liberty-games-best-crowd-party-new-york.html.
Monteil, A. (2024, July 12). With her first ever cover story, Ellie
the Elephant is the mascot of
our queer hearts. Them. https://www.them.us/story/ellie-the-elephant-wnba-mascot-ny-liberty-time-out-magazine-cover.
Pumpkin Spice. [@pumpkinspiceeee_].
(2024, August 11). She’s my absolute favorite I wanna be
her
friend #ellietheelephant #ellieelephant #newyorkliberity #nyliberty #wnba [Video].
TikTok. https://www.tiktok.com/@pumpkinspiceeee_/video/7379337954314997038.
Shifman, L. (2014). Memes in digital culture. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. Chapter 3.
Zeisler, A. (2008). Feminism and pop culture. New York, NY: Seal
Press. Pp. 1-2.
I really enjoyed this op-ed, and it highlights how Ellie the Elephant was an icon for bigger cultural transformation rather than just another WNBA mascot. You made a great connection to the Zeisler article and how Ellie’s new style, though still feminine, is not designed to appeal to the male gaze. While embracing the feminine, her added swagger shines through as a mode of empowerment; she brings the public idea about basketball mascots out of the space of having to be gender-neutral or male-presenting and thus falls in line with feminist ideals, a modern approach to a long term problem in sports. You also did a great job including the discourse surrounding memes and virality into your discussion in a way that shows meme culture to be more than just an ever-flowing wave of passing trends, but as having the power to provoke change. Ellie’s rebrand is representative of our societal movement into diversifying spaces and you effectively communicated how her appearance coincides with the popular culture ideologies we have discussed throughout the semester. If you were to build off of this op-ed even further, I think it would be interesting to consider whether Ellie serves as a vehicle for real structural change or if she is merely being used as a marketing tactic.
ReplyDelete-Aitalia Sharpe
I really enjoyed this op-ed and the way it highlights how Ellie the Elephant was an icon for bigger cultural transformation rather than being just another WNBA mascot. You made a great connection to the Zeisler article and how Ellie’s new style, though still feminine, is not designed to appeal to the male gaze. While embracing the feminine, her added swagger shines through as a mode of empowerment; she brings the public idea about basketball mascots out of the space of having to be gender neutral or male-presenting, and thus falls in line with feminist ideals, a modern approach to a long term problem in sports. This topic is specific to a niche group of people and thus relates to the Vaidya, Lingel reading about counterpublics. Ellie’s appearance counters the norm accepted by the majority. You also did a great job including the discourse surrounding memes and virality into your discussion in a way that shows meme culture to be more than just an everflowing wave of passing trends, but as having the power to provoke change. Ellie’s rebrand is representative of our societal movement into diversifying spaces and you effectively communicated how her appearance coincides with the popular culture ideologies we have discussed throughout the semester. If you were to build off of this op-ed even further, I think it would be interesting to consider whether Ellie serves as a vehicle for real structural change or if she is merely being used as a marketing tactic.
Delete-Aitalia Sharpe (updated)