37. In Deep with Matt George: Challenging Misogyny through Surf Journalism

Confessions of a Surf Lady | The First Women's Surfing Podcast™

Despite facing misogyny prevalent in the surf industry, Matt George, a renowned surf journalist and Senior Contributing Editor at SURFER for over 35 years, has been an advocate for women in surfing.

In his new book, In Deep, you'll discover an anthology of Matt's most influential articles and photographs, including stories about courageous women in surfing. From a young Bethany Hamilton's shark attack as told from the perspective of the apex predator to a feature about Keala Kennelly that inadvertently outed her to her family.
However, this episode goes beyond 'In Deep,' bridging the gap between new surf media and traditional surf media. We dive into the contrast between a WOC self-published podcast like 'Confessions of a Surf Lady' and the traditional, white-male dominated world of one of the most influential surf publications of all time, SURFER Magazine.
Throughout the episode, we explore Matt's top tips for aspiring journalists and he shares his confessions on some of our most popular topics. But most importantly, Matt imparts empowering words of advice to all surf ladies on navigating a blossoming women's surf culture and industry.
This episode is packed with practical writing advice, genuine surf stories, and thought-provoking conversations that you won't want to miss.
Main Themes

• About In-Deep: "It is a collection of stories that really reflect the zeitgeist. As the title In Deep implies, it gets very, very much behind the curtain of professional surfers, professional contests, professional people, and the great surf spots of the world." — Matt George [03:00 → 03:19]
• Women in Surfing: "In my experience, Laura, I have found all the female surfers that I've written about are very courageous and very powerful. While all the men that I've written about, I've found them very vulnerable, almost weak compared to the women." — Matt George [08:46 → 09:03]
• The Art of Journalism: "When I meet someone to do something as personal as a profile, as a featured article, I very much look for what they're not saying. Not exactly what they're saying, but what they're not saying."— Matt George [09:51 → 10:06]
• Connected to the Cosmos: "As surfers, we are a very unique, fringe dwelling tribe and we are connected to something absolutely extraordinary, connected to the cosmos, different than other sports." — Matt George [11:45 → 11:57]
• Diversity and Inclusion: "Having a conversation with you, someone that's worked intimately in a male dominated surf industry for decades, and hearing that there have been advocates for people like me. It's comforting, because for women, like me, still face misogynistic attitudes in the lineup." — Laura Day [14:44 → 15:09]

Resources

• Follow us your host Laura Day: @confessionsofasurflady
• Follow The Surf Société: @surfsociete for surf lady tips from #thesurflab inside the membership
• Purchase In Deep by Matt George at DiAngelo Publications
• Follow Matt on Instagram: @mattgeorge_in_deep
• Watch Matt's Film:

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Support the show

Confessions of a Surf Lady, women's surfing podcast, is supported by The Surf Société, our unique digital women's surfing platform where we come together to Learn More. Surf Better. Live Happy. Learn more at Surfsociete.com