from qwipster.net
What to make of yesterday's Washington Post article about how women are taking over the nation's newsrooms? It reminded me strongly of Newsweek's "Boy Crisis" cover story from January that is still reverberating despite having been debunked. Similarly, WaPo's Paul Farhi hints strongly at a crisis to come, now that women account for 58% of TV reporters, 55% of middle managers, 66% of news producers and 56% of news writers. Of course, that's "outside of a few traditionally male bastions -- the sports guy, the weathercaster, the boss." Phew! Breathe a sigh of relief. The boss' chair is still safe.
But still, somehow the newsroom seems to be gettin' all girly. Why should this be a cause for alarm? Reports Farhi:
News managers look on these numbers with a mixture of pride and mild alarm. Pride because decades of equal-opportunity employment rules, inclusive hiring policies and viewer acceptance of diversity have opened up what had once been a preserve of men, and primarily white men. But concern, too, since the male exodus threatens the traditional anchor model, in which a male-female duo is sitting at the head of a symbolic nuclear family. There is also some debate about whether the "feminization" of the newsroom has led to a more female-oriented news agenda."
There are so many things wrong with this paragraph I don't know where to start. Pat yourselves on the back for lifting barriers, gentlemen, just be ready to sound the alarm when something actually changes? Concern about the threat to the traditional anchor model, with a "male-female duo is sitting at the head of a symbolic nuclear family?" Yes, people were truly up in arms at the absence of suitable "wives" for people like Walter Cronkite, Dan Rather, Peter Jennings, Charlie Gibson. Or how about this scary prospect: has the "feminization" of the newsroom led to a more female-oriented news agenda? And oh, my God, are those TAMPON ADS YOU'RE RUNNING?
Consultants and other hand-wringers interviewed by Farhi worry that a female-dominated newscast might alienate male viewers. "The average viewer wants balance, both in the kinds of stories that are reported and who appears on camera." Yes, the news has always been famous for its diverse newscasts strictly reflecting the national demographic. Look, if data suggests audiences respond better to male anchors, say so. But for the love of God, use DATA. This kind of pussy-footing around the issue is insulting to pretty much everyone involved.
And speaking of insulting: Where have the good men gone? "Many observers suggest that their departure reflects the transformation of TV news from a "glamour" business to a low-wage, no-growth field with limited career potential." Ah, so that's it. So then the rise of the female newsie isn't, in fact, due to barriers falling but to the loss of prestige and payout? Again, some numbers might have been nice, or at least more than a throwaway comment that is based on "many observers" but not the actual info behind their observations. Helpful, that.
As for Farhi's fearmongering that our very news is in danger of being co-opted by "family" stories like "contraception, abortion, autism, prenatal development, childbirth, postpartum depression and child pornography" (child porn! That's a family story if ever I saw one!), just listing the litany of stories that were supposedly inspired by Elizabeth Vargas' girlishness isn't enough to prove that she dragged the ABC News department kicking and screaming into the dark recesses of her womb.
The real irony of this story is that if you strip away the conjecture and dark mutterings, you're left with statistics: newsroom balances have shifted from male to female, up from the days of Ron Burgundy and Veronica Corningstone and also from the early 90's when parity was reached. How's this for a slant: "As the TV news industry has stripped away barriers to women, the industry has enjoyed significant growth in female anchors, reporters, producers and editors, and in fact most newsroom skew slightly female in terms of production and on-air talent. However, despite these gains, the top echelons of TVNews have remained stubbornly male-dominated, with 80% of news directors are men and most of the top brass still overwhelmingly male. Why has the march of women's progress in the newsroom stopped at the front office? Paul Farhi investigates."
