Sexism in media.

[futurebird.livejournal.com]

"What Does An Important Person Look Like?" That's the question Jennifer Dalton poses in her new "Cool Guys Like You" exhibition, opening Friday at New York's Winkleman Gallery. And in case you hadn't guessed, the answer is: a dude.
As Dalton explains in her statement about the installation, an open letter to talk show hosts "Bill/Brian/Charlie/Jon/Leonard/Rachel/Stephen/Terry": "When I looked closely at whom you interview -- the people you collectively decide are the most important of the moment -- I was very surprised…. In 2010, the most lopsided show among you featured only 17.5% female guests. The most balanced among you still only featured 34% female guest s…. If I may be so bold, WTF?"

From Salon.com : Does "The Daily Show" still have a woman problem?
BY MARY ELIZABETH WILLIAMS Posted on FRIDAY, SEP 9, 2011 14:10 ET 

Whenever anyone tries to talk about sexism the one frequently seen reflexive response is to say something along the lines of "there is a very good reason why there are more men than women" then reasons are given that range from the blatantly sexist (women are not funny) to the systemic (not enough women who can fit these roles, women don't want to do these things in large enough numbers) These responses can be found in the comments of the salon.com article --the trouble is all of these responses are cop-outs and they are rarely supported by data.

A quick internet search will tell you that women outnumber men in journalism schools, and women outnumber men in drama schools. This is a hard indication that women WANT these kinds of jobs and they WANT to be in the industry and they are studying and working toward that goal in large enough numbers that it should not be hard at all to find one good woman suited to a given job. Of coure, a degree doesn't make one qualified or good, but the idea that there isn't a sufficient pool of women seeking these positions is nothing more than a comforting myth that helps us ignore the 10,000 gorilla in the room:

That even funny, awesome, compassionate liberals can be sexist.

My challenge to you: Don't try to explain this away. Instead think of something, however large or small it might be, that you can do to change it. Do you need an incentive beyond simple justice and fairness? Well, think of this: When we tap in to all of those silent female voices we will have better media and funnier comedy, that's just what happens when you select from a bigger pool without sexist blinders on.

Comments

[notmrgarrison.livejournal.com]

"women are not as funny as men"

As stated, that is a retarded statement. But the statement "most of the best comedians are male" isn't. You really think audiences don't laugh as much because the comedian is female?

The idea that women aren't funny and the idea that women are just as funny as men are both dogmatic beliefs not supported by reality.

[badlydrawnjeff.livejournal.com]

I don't disagree, but the reality is people still believe it. Even in modern times (http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/features/2007/01/hitchens200701).

[blue-mangos.livejournal.com]

'Best' is a subjective statement. Most of the most popular comedians are male. And yes, I think it's because people will automatically assume that the man will be funnier and are more likely to laugh at his jokes. It's human nature to follow the crowd, to find things funny because we have been conditioned to.

[harry-beast.livejournal.com]

Comedy is subjective. The measure of success is whether people people laugh at something, whether they find something funny. Maybe if members of the audience had been raised in a different environment, conditioned differently, their sense of humour would have developed in a more gender balanced manner. But a comedian has to entertain the audience as it is, not as it should be.

[blue-mangos.livejournal.com]

I can agree with this, it actually goes along with what I was saying. I think it will take an overhaul of attitudes to bring female comedians on a fully equal standing with the men. But I do see it happening one day.