New York Magazine's 'This Is New York' Issue Cover: Very White, Lots of Dudes

I love New York magazine. I read it every week, I interned there in college, I factchecked at the web site out of college, I want to be Ariel Levy or Emily Nussbaum when I grow up. It deserves every award it gets. But I did a doubletake when I arrived home tonight to see the cover of the "This Is New York, 1968 - 2008" issue: apparently the cultural titans among us are very white and have penises.

I counted 21 men and 4 women, including Madonna, Bea Arthur, etc. (And there's one person -- the angel -- of indeterminate gender.) Of the whole lot, there's two black men and one Hispanic man. I'm not discrediting the fine, fine work of Woody Allen, David Letterman and the gang, but what's up with all the white men on the cover? Do white men sell magazines or something? Or when it comes to "the 196 cultural works that best defined our city since this magazine began" did women and people of color just not define too much?

To be fair, there's several nice articles on the inside of the magazine extolling New York City's imprint on film, TV and literature. In it, we see diversity that actually reflects cultural demographic reality: Susan Sontag, Toni Morrison, Spike Lee. And the intro to the whole package is about Rhoda, the Mary Tyler Moore spin-off. But honestly:

Where's Gloria Steinem in all her kooky-glasses-wearing glory? The feminist magazine Ms. started as an insert in New York magazine, after all. (Although there isn't an ode-to-NYC-magazines section of this. She did write a couple books, though.)

And bisexual folk singer Ani Di Franco tore up the city in the early '90s ("F train full of high school students / so much shouting / so much laughter / last night's underwear in my back pocket / sure sign of the morning after"). Sure, she's not as big as Madonna, but still...

Wasn't Erica Jong's book Fear of Flying (a huge book in its time) set partially in NYC? She's a photogenic lady.

And what about Chloe Sevigny from Kids? Or Julia Louis-Dreyfuss on Seinfeld? Or Tina Fey and Tracey Morgan from 30 Rock and Saturday Night Live?

The Cosby Show was supposed to be set in Brooklyn.

And what about the character of Carrie Bradshaw or real-life actress Sarah Jessica Parker? Hello? Remember that show, Sex and the City?

Dare I even suggest Yoko Ono, a performance artist?

Oh well. At least they included that porn film, Deep Throat, on the cover.

Comments

[CMonster]

not sure about sex and the city...

but good lord, what about some of the 20th centuries most famous latin musicians:
Tito Puente (born and bred New Yorker)
La Lupe (Cuban born, lived in the Bronx)
whoever founded the Palladium...

there's more i'm no doubt forgetting...

[minox]

How sad that New York has committed the unforgivable sin of not having their cover look like a production of the US Census Bureau.

[Nommo]

New York Magazine has never been any thing else. Occasionally they figure out that there is something going on that is not about white people, but the mag has never been about more than a particular segment of the city. The same one the author is talking about now.

[wayoutleft]

every moderately sized burg now has a "lifestyle" magazine which is the last refuge of the illusion that the city in question is mainly white people cooking brown, yellow, red, and black peoples' food.

[CAPTAIND]

LETS SEE, THE BLACK POPULATION IS ABOUT 12% so two blacks would be representative, but then the Hispanics were under-represented as they represent 15% of the U.S. population so they should have had at lest three. And women represent more than 50% of the population, so they were way under-represented. At 65 having been born the son of an Italian immigrant, worked as an honest to goodness civil rights worker in the 60's and served in Viet Nam, I had hoped we would have reached a place in America where race, gender, and ethnic background, would be secondary to honest to goodness achievments. What's your point Ms. Wakeman, there is a conspiracy of white men in New York to garner all the attention? Give me a break. Articles like yours only engenders the anger and tension amongst various groups. Very devisive, not unifying. Maybe the answer is for members of the under represented groups to try harder, or maybe better yet, people like you should quit making it a prejudice and minority contest.

[LulaB]

Your math is a bit off. Looking at New York City - specifically, the population of minority population raises tremendously. This city has the most people of color than most regions in the USA. Look it up yourself.

Being divisive is the premise of the article. And this “undeveloped group” is not inferior and not undeveloped and doesn't need to try harder. The problem is Mainstream American has always excluded the work and contributions of people of color and women.

[CAPTAIND]

No otheer time in our history have ersons of color reached such heights. I simply think it is time to quit carrying a chip on your shoulder and take the chance to avoid the color and ethnic stereotype. To hear someone like Michele Obama rail at mean america with white oppression while she has a superior educationa dn higher salary than alsmost any white American. Alsom her Husband is doing just fine as a presidential candidate. Don't yopu think its time to take off the " I am a victim" mantle and start judging everyone on individual merit. As I see it we are going backwords because so many groups want to play the guilt card. I am afraid Senator Obama will set racial harmony back a whole generation and so will you Ms. Wakeman. How sad. 40 plus years ago when I was an active civil rights worker I did not dream this day would come.

[nihilon x]

"I had hoped we would have reached a place in America where race, gender, and ethnic background, would be secondary to honest to goodness achievments."

As would I, but that's not the case.

George Bush didn't "try harder" at all...and look where that got him.

No matter what your arguments to the contrary, this is still a nation where some 98% of the CEO's and some 100% of our presidents have all been white males.

And that has little to do with "trying harder" and everything to do with institutionalized sexism and racism.

[Jazz42]

Great Comment.
I agree completely
Thank you,

[MrUnlimited]

Your point would be more valid if if the magazine wasn't called "New York Magazine". Discussion of cultural icons that defined the city from 1968-2008 means that the demographics of NYC are given more weight than national demographics with regards to determining what constitutes proportional representation.

As of 2000, NYC was 28% black, 37% white, 27% hispanic, etc... Why don't you do your little proportional analysis again and see what the results are?

[Jasonk]

Why exactly do these young writers love to use the p word?

If a man wrote "looks like you need a vagina to get on the cover". Wouldn't you find it crude and offensive? Well, it goes both ways.

[SevereTireDamage]

This reminds me of my main objection to "Sex & the City"; that there in NYC were four single 30ish professional women, and not one was African-American, Jewish, Italian or Puerto Rican. Hell, none of them was actually from the city!

I think this is the result of "Manhattan bias", something New York magazine and pop culture generally have always suffered from. And something those of us from Brooklyn and Queens have always ridiculed.

[Nommo]

New York Magazine generally translates as "Manhattan". That, sans Harlem, Washington Heights and the Lower East Side.

[JScott]

You think that's too white? Take a look at Fortune magazine-same thing, despite the 'diversity' of this country the stories/pics are overwhelmingly still about white males. Seems like 'the man' still has a chokehold on the wealth of this country.

[Jazz42]

The white man will fight to the bitter end to keep control of power. The system is set up by the white man to keep control.

[spyfive]

this issue's on my kitchen table awaiting a read -- and i agree very much with your assertion that it's a very white-male-centric cover (though I'm not sure I wholeheartedly with your suggestions of who should appear instead). you're right; it's a little mindblowing how NY Mag, of all pubs, would be the one to err this way.

besides that, i thought the cosbys lived in chicago??