Women

Through the involvement of government legislature and the evolving demeanor of todays society, inequalities between men and women in the workplace have dwindled to an all time low. However, while it is inevitable that progress continues, the struggle remains for women to gain the full equality they deserve. Many individuals are in error, believing that the war against gender discrimination has come to a victorious halt, however, this is not the case. It is essential to constitute the degree of validity, or ambiguity concerning the pervasive affirmations of a decrease in discrimination against women in the work force. Women endure a constant struggle as they fight to acquire, in all aspects, equality at work. Female news anchor certainly partake in this particular struggle. The road to news anchoring is an imperious one; survival is seldom and flourishing in the profession is less than common. As of today, the numbers of women who succeed as anchors is deficient due to the inconspicuous discrimination that hinders womens progress in the profession. There exists a plethora of men who have succeeded in the alluring yet demanding occupation of news anchoring, however, women, on the other hand, are avidly awaiting not only progress, but prosperity. heir lack of ascendancy continues to be impeded by the strict standards for beauty set for women in the industry, contrasted by the looser requirements expected of men. To succeed as newscasters women must surpass men in all aspects, their work ethic must be more efficient, their appearance must be flawless and they must go beyond their limits, testing their capabilities. While critical steps have been taken by women in televised broadcasting, equality is remote since men are a dominating force in the industry. Men in the television news spectrum admit that women must overcome far more obstacles than men while attempting to thrive as news anchors. Larry King, a premier broadcast interviewer, had this to say: I know that if I were Loretta King instead of Larry King I would be nowhere near where I am today. I would not have had a national radio talk show in 1978, national cable show of my own, and a national column if I had started out being the wrong gender (Craft, 1988). As quoted in Women in Television News by Judith S. Gelfman (1976), Al Ittleson, former vice-president of ABC News believes that a notable appearance is required for both men and women presenting the news, however, he stresses the importance of a womans appearance: Women are supposed to be beautiful. People anticipate what a woman is supposed to look like, so when they come to television-I havent seen an unattractive woman on television yet In fact, theyre hired, I would say, probably more because of the way they look and their image than because of their background. A man with a very strong journalism background and a man who has broken storiescan get away with a little bit of homeliness. Men arent supposed to be attractive. Women have a tougher time. (88) Our society deems looks as the most important aspect of a woman. Though anchorwomen are required to possess feminine traits, efficiency, while on the job, is also necessary. Liesbet van Zoonen explains in his book Feminist Media Studies (Media Culture &ump; Society series) (1994) the contrasting

expectations required of men and women as news anchors saying, one must assume femininity as a feature of female journalists and masculinity as a different characteristic of male journalists (van Zoonen, 1994). The assumptions of society are reflected through everyday life on all ends of the spectrum and are then also revealed on television news. The challenges women face as news anchor are all the more difficult because of the prevailing of men over women in the news industry. Men are convinced that males are more qualified than women in handling such a high position. If a woman doesnt meet an overseers (who is usually a male) requirements, her job is automatically put in jeopardy. However, these expectations are usually not complied with since they are higher than needed to be. An attractive appearance is placed extremely high on their list of requirements, how a woman looks determines the position she receives and how much air-time she gets. In Waiting for Prime Time: The Women of Television News veteran television correspondent Marlene Sanders notes, "There is no doubt that women face more pressure than men do on television in terms of appearance, age, and demeanor" (Sanders &ump; Rock, 1988, p. 147). While their have been many cases of women news anchors being fired based on their sex, physical appearance or age Christine Craft is a notable anchorwomen who was discriminated against yet fought back. She proclaims in her book, Too Old, Too Ugly, and Not Deferential to Men: An Anchorwoman's Courageous Battle Against Sex Discrimination that she was told by her overseer at KMBC in Kansas City, You dont hide your intelligence to make guys look smarter (Craft, 1988). Craft was also told she was too old, too unattractive, and not sufficiently deferential to men (Craft 1988). Due to the fact that her boss told her this personally, Craft felt she had been discriminated against because of her gender. Craft immediately took her case to court and rightfully received a total of $600,000. Craft explains that at this particular station, the men could be balding, jowly, bespectacled, even fat and encased in double-knit, yet the women had to be flawless. Moreover, there was the expectation that I should pretend not to know certain facts just because I was a woman (Craft 1988). Craft was clearly fired for all the wrong reasons. Never once did her overseer mention he was dissatisfied with her work or that she was incompetent for the job, she was simply a woman and according to the news station too old and too unattractive (Craft, 1988). The fact that she was discriminated against is also revealed in this statistic taken at the time, out of all the anchors in the country who were over 40, men made up ninety-seven percent of that, with three percent being women who did not look their age (Craft 1988). Marlene Sanders writes that what is seen in Crafts case is that wrinkles are seasoning in a man but disqualification in a woman, and that while this may not be sexual discrimination, it is a sad statement about how women are viewed in our society (Sanders and Rock 1988, p. 148). Setting such high beauty standards for women as news anchors is a pity and the measures stations take to maintain their image through anchorwomen is unacceptable and discriminatory against women. While all aspects of news television are unsteady, women news anchors in particular are completely unsure of how long they can hold an anchoring position. Marlene Sanders simply says, The message is clear; we can all be replaced. There are no guarantees of longevity, and no obvious destination where news professionals can translate their experience and knowledge into new and satisfying careers (Sanders and Rock 1988). Craft, while working at a much smaller station than KMBC in Kansas City, experienced many great things and gave her a positive outlook concerning her career. Craft mentions, I was content to be in a place where the emphasis was on getting the stories and

getting them right. Only once did management mention my appearance, and that was to tell me to pull my hair back a bit (Craft 1988). Before taking the position in Kansas City, she affirmed her unwillingness to revamp herself physically. Though they asserted her that this would not occur, Craft experienced discomfort as she was approached by a make-up artist. These consultations continued and eventually Craft was fired, however she refused to go down without a fight. A woman by the name of Sherry Chastain, who also worked at KMBC said her overseers instructed her to monitor the appearance of female anchors and reporters, but never malesthe male counterpart was bald with a bad toupee and thick glasses, yet nothing was ever mentioned about monitoring his appearance (Craft 1988). It is clearly discriminating, the fact that, male anchors with aging get promoted, while women, on the other hand, with aging become a target for news executives to harass. Disparaging men who choose to discriminate against women can be accused for the problems women face as news anchors. An executive at CBS responsible for deciding who to hire reveals the disturbing way in which he makes his final decision, he observed the women for a few seconds and asked, Do I want to f*** them? (Katz 1995). This particular mans approach was completely distasteful and encumbers what television news is truly about-delivering news accurately and efficiently. Catherine Crier was attacked on the basis of her gender and was reprimanded for her lack of prior experience in broadcasting; her alluring appearance did not aid her struggle. However, Crier did possess experience, politically, due to her past occupations as a lawyer and judge. Crier explained, Journalists couched their reaction in terms of experience and background, but those same journalists have failed to voice similar criticisms of Pierre Salinger or Bill Moyers, two men who jumped from politics into broadcast news (Fensch: McHargue 1993). The lack of women on the news desk is not ascending, which is still a frustration for most women (Fensch: McHargue 1993). The fact that women are being hired based on their attractiveness is completely absurd, for an anchorwoman to contribute to the news station, a strong background in broadcasting is essential. A woman who is looking to hold an anchoring position must possess particular attributes necessary to make it and eventually succeed in television news. Ann Rubenstein of NBC Nightly News explains, You must really decide for yourself what youre going to do and not do. And what price you are willing to pay for whatever theyre offering (Fensch: Orenstein 1993). A good work ethic and eternal drive are characteristics that can lead a woman to triumph as a news anchor in the competitive spectrum of television news. Mary Alice Williams, of CNN and NBC appeared on camera, as an anchor of the evening news breaks, and by the end of her first three weeks she had anchored every network news show (Fensch: White 1993). A woman must reflect a preeminent fervor when telling the news; this particular aspect is crucial and a capital reason for why the acclaimed women persist and flourish as anchorwomen. As quoted in Frenschs Television News Anchors: An Anthology of Profiles of the Major Figures and Issues in the United States Network Reporting (1993) Diane Sawyer voices her opinion: I really love what you learn every day in the business. I love the breathtaking way we walk into peoples lives and ask them anything we want and then leave. For a moment you have available to you the whole universe of a persons life-the pain and the suffering and the joy and the struggle. You can learn from it and take it with you and then come back the next day with somebody else. Thats what I like to do. (94) Sawyers everlasting ardor carried her through to success. The undying conviction to overcome any

encumbrance and, ultimately, constant impudence keeps the few prosperous anchor women going. Aspiring news anchors ultimate ticket to success includes maintaining a strong work ethic as well as ambition and developing effective communication skills.

Women, despite the role they play in the workforce, will always be held to higher standards than men. Women, in all spectrums of the workforce, are required to depict an alluring appearance along with a touch of tenderness yet men are expected to do much less in regards to their looks. Attorney for Ms. Sindland, a woman who filed a gender and age discrimination complaint due to her being mistreated at Fox 61 had this to say, Fox 61 actively encourages younger women to 'be sexy,' and favors younger women and men of all ages over older, more experienced female on-air news professionals (Schwartz, 2009). The discrimination is apparent; women continue to be harassed by news stations putting their job on the line if they dont meet the beauty standards. However, the men are clearly not subject to these requirements and this is presented through this case as the men, regardless of age prevail over women. Another woman caught in this sort of dilemma, Kelly Eckerman, filed a suit against KMBC Kansas City, the same news station Crier filed against in 1980s. Eckerman said that KMBC's president and general manager, Wayne Godsey, told her that men can have a long run in television broadcasting and that women, if they take care of themselves, can have a decent one. He informed her that she had a decent run in the business. There is an extreme disparity in management's perception of the older men - who can gain weight, turn gray, wear glasses, etc. Eckerman wrote. The double standard for women is that we must stay looking young and pretty, and once we pass the dreaded age of 40, then (even worse) 45, we are no longer the future' in television news (Riley, 2008). Eckerman explained it best saying there was a double standard for women; while men are able to slack off in regards to their image, such behavior by a woman would be completely intolerable. Aging is inevitable, and depending on the mans longevity working at the station, may bring promotion, however, aging for women is intolerable by news stations and an anchorwoman must avoid it at all costs. Unfortunately, the numbers of women who receive anchor positions demonstrate a lack of progression due to the discrimination that contravenes in their efforts to advance in the field of broadcasting. Though women must surmount more challenges as news anchors than their male counterparts, it has been demonstrated that women are more than willing to confront these situation in order to succeed as anchorwomen. Though there is much progress to be made before equality among men and women on the news desk is attained, women continue to stand firmly on their views concerning discrimination and dont go down without a fight. The incompetence society deems of women as news anchors is unjust; women are more than qualified and their potential to thrive is beyond what one can imagine. Though the role physical appearance plays among male and female news anchors is a crucial one, especially for women, it should not interfere with a womans professional progress. Discrimination severely limits a womans advancement in their profession, which is greatly unjust; opportunities to ascend should be given to all and anything that inhibits this should be terminated. Link: 123helpme.com