Moments after Canadian tennis player Eugenie Bouchard reigned victorious as a finalist in the Australian Open, Aussie commentator Ian Cohen spouted rude comments.

“Can you give us a twirl and tell us about your outfit?”

The tennis champion politely obeyed. However, the sea of angry women on Twitter weren’t so forgiving. Neither am I.

Male athletes are typically bombarded with questions and banter about the game, but there was no “how did you play?” for Ms. Bouchard. Ask any male athlete what he’s wearing and to twirl for the crowd. He’ll raise an eyebrow or possibly even a fist because athletes are hardworking, well-trained tough guys, and that’s simply not allowed within the social norms of male athletics. Does that mean that women in sports don’t measure up? Are they not well-trained and well-versed in their profession?

It wasn’t until babysitting a group of elementary-aged boys that I realized these dismissive opinions of females in the sports industry are ingrained young. A TV show where a middle school girl joins her school’s all-boys football team aired that night. She is confident until harassed by the male players. I noticed something unexpected as I observed the boys I babysat: they began to cheer on as the football players tormented and teased the girl. “I hope she’s kicked off the team,” they said. “Girls can’t play football. This show is stupid.”

I suppose I had more hope that this sudden feminist movement that has risen to prominence had trickled down.

Campaigns such as Tampax’s “Like a Girl” push for an acceptance for strong female athletes. But the young male audience that desperately needs to receive this powerful message is missing it. There is a gaping hole that needs to be filled with reinforcing messages that boys will actually pay attention to. That hole needs to be filled with parents willing to repeat those messages.

It’s a slow process, but it needs a strong kickstart. Women like Fox Sports reporter Erin Andrews who strictly stick to a certain wardrobe while on the job to avoid degradation. She wants her commentary to mean more than her coat and curls. There’s Danica Patrick, who is more well-known as the “Go Daddy” girl now than as an achieving NASCAR driver.

It exists in the way we speak, the way we act, in our minds. We should live in a world where Google searching “female sports stars” doesn’t turn up “10 Hottest Naked Female Sports Stars” on the second hit.

We’re empowering our women, but we need to empower our men to empower our women.