Sunday, October 08, 2006
What Women Want
Just a quick post to note my irritation with the continued media-driven marginalization of women in American politics. If it's obvious in the enlightened pages of The New York Times, just think how blatant it is in the mass-media, places like CNN and Fox News!
What I'm talking about is today's political commentary on the opinion pages of the Times. Out of 18 pundits whose views are presented, only THREE are women. Of those three, two were invisible speechwriters for male politicians; the other is Ellen Malcolm, the president of the women's political action group Emily's List.
In her commentary, "What Women Want," Macolm informs us that women might be persuaded to pay attention to the elections if politicians start "talking about issues that directly affect their families and showing them how voting for Democrats — especially women candidates — can make a difference. They’ll be receptive to Democratic policies like protecting Social Security, making college affordable and finding an end to the morass in Iraq."
Okay, these are worthy issues. But I find it insulting to suggest that women are only interested in politics if the issues are directly related to our families. There's a whole lot that women want out of politics, and the scope of our interest goes way beyond education, health care and social security, though of course these issues are important to all Americans, regardless of our gender.
If the Times wants to know what women want, they should ask more of us what we think. Ask some non-elite women for a change! Ask some Latinas or African American women! Ask some ordinary teachers, nurses, and bank tellers, for pete's sake!
If, like me, you're impatient with the mainstream media's nelgect of women, a good place to look for more vibrant coverage would be the blog Feministing. The blog itself is always interesting, but what's really useful is the amazing blogroll and resource list running down the right side of your screen. Want to know what women want? Spend a little time exploring that blogroll, and you'll find out!
What I'm talking about is today's political commentary on the opinion pages of the Times. Out of 18 pundits whose views are presented, only THREE are women. Of those three, two were invisible speechwriters for male politicians; the other is Ellen Malcolm, the president of the women's political action group Emily's List.
In her commentary, "What Women Want," Macolm informs us that women might be persuaded to pay attention to the elections if politicians start "talking about issues that directly affect their families and showing them how voting for Democrats — especially women candidates — can make a difference. They’ll be receptive to Democratic policies like protecting Social Security, making college affordable and finding an end to the morass in Iraq."
Okay, these are worthy issues. But I find it insulting to suggest that women are only interested in politics if the issues are directly related to our families. There's a whole lot that women want out of politics, and the scope of our interest goes way beyond education, health care and social security, though of course these issues are important to all Americans, regardless of our gender.
If the Times wants to know what women want, they should ask more of us what we think. Ask some non-elite women for a change! Ask some Latinas or African American women! Ask some ordinary teachers, nurses, and bank tellers, for pete's sake!
If, like me, you're impatient with the mainstream media's nelgect of women, a good place to look for more vibrant coverage would be the blog Feministing. The blog itself is always interesting, but what's really useful is the amazing blogroll and resource list running down the right side of your screen. Want to know what women want? Spend a little time exploring that blogroll, and you'll find out!
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