With the advent of television came the natural evolution of broadcast news. Yet, the screen in the early days of TV news was dominated by men.
While it’s no big surprise that women in broadcast news were essentially non-existent during the genesis of TV news, there were a few trailblazers over the next half century who started making their mark.
These were the women who opened doors and made it easier for today’s female broadcasters to navigate an industry that’s still somewhat fraught with sexist overtones.
Trailblazing Women in Broadcast News
The first female television news anchor appeared in 1947. Dorothy Fuldheim served in this role at WEWS in Cleveland, Ohio and she continued her broadcasting career into her 90s. A year later, in 1948, Pauline Frederick was hired by ABC News, making her the first full-time network television news standard female correspondent.
The 1950s were relatively quiet for women in broadcasting as the country settled into traditional male and female roles across many industries. But the times they were a changin’ as views shifted through the 1960s.
In 1972, Susan Stamberg was the first woman to anchor a nightly news show on NPR’s All Things Considered. A couple of years later came the legendary Barbara Walters. After working for years behind the scenes, she was officially named the first female co-host of NBC’s The Today Show in 1974. Then in 1976, she moved to ABC News as the first female co-anchor of a network evening news program.
By the 1980s, some of the women in the industry were growing frustrated with rampant sexism in the industry. When Christine Craft was demoted at KMBC-TV for being “too old, too ugly, and not sufficiently deferential to men,” she took it to the courts. She won her landmark case in 1983 while shedding light on the industry’s discrimination. Ten years later, in 1993, Connie Chung would become the first Asian-American (and second woman) to co-anchor the CBS Evening News – a major weekday network evening broadcast.
The Sexism Was Exposed, But Still Exists
By the 2000s, women had a lot more opportunities. In 2006, Katie Couric became the first woman to serve as a sole weeknight anchor on the CBS Evening News. Meanwhile, Gwen Ifill and Judy Woodruff were the first all-female nightly network news anchor team when they were brought on as co-anchors of PBS NewsHour in 2013.
Even so, female TV news talent continue to face obstacles that their male counterparts do not. They’re much more harshly criticized, as both management and viewers judge women broadcasters on their hair, makeup, clothing, and weight in a way that men are not. As a result of this, they often struggle with balancing authority and expertise against societal expectations of them.
The situation is even more imbalanced on social media, where female broadcast journalists experience a disproportionate number of threats, vicious statements, and even targeted gender-based abuse.
In addition, since men continue to hold the majority of the management and decision-making roles in the newsrooms, women’s needs are often misunderstood, minimized, ignored, or overlooked. This is also problematic in situations where the women are still handling the brunt of household and caregiving activities outside of work.
Then there’s the age-old double standard of ageism. While men get ‘more distinguished’ with age, older women feel increasingly pressured or marginalized when stations begin to seek younger on-air personalities.
An Experienced TV News Talent Agent Helps
When it comes to witnessing the sexism and hypocrisy for women in broadcast news, TV news talent agent Mort Meisner has seen it all.
In his 30+ years of experience as an agent, he’s fought to protect his female clients from these imbalances and abuses. And continues the battle.
So if you’re a woman in the broadcast journalism industry who feels that you’re not getting the right kind of attention to further your career, contact Mort today. He doesn’t shy away from calling BS when he sees it.
