media

Many have asked me about the Progressive Women’s Voices program sponsored by the Women’s Media Center, and basically, I can’t sing its praises enough. In the program’s first year, they intensively media trained 33 women (including moi!) who have gone on to earn over 1000 media hits year to date. With the WMC’s stellar training and ongoing help, in 2008, our PWV women wrote Op Eds in the Washington Post and The New York Times, features for Elle and New York magazine, were quoted in USA Today, Forbes, Variety, Mother Jones, the Wall Street Journal, Slate, Salon, The New Republic, the Los Angeles Times, on the Associated Press and Reuters wires, appeared on Good Morning America, CNN, MSNBC, CBS Nightly News, Fox News, ABC News, CNBC, The Tyra Banks Show, PBS’s “To The Contrary,” Bill Moyers, on numerous NPR shows, and in hundreds of other significant media outlets.

And they’ve just posted their 2009 dates and deadlines, so for those of you who are considering this, I say GO FOR IT! The time is now. Here are deets:

2009 PWV Class 1 Schedule:
Dec 15: Application Deadline
February 6-7: First Training in NYC
March 6-7: Second Training in NYC
April 3-4: Third Training in NYC

2009 PWV Class 2 Schedule:
March 10: Application Deadline
April 24-25: First Training in NYC
May 29-30: Second Training in NYC
June 26-27: Third Training in NYC

2009 PWV Class 3 Schedule:
June 1: Application Deadline
July 24-25: First Training in NYC
August 28-29: Second Training in NYC
September 25-26: Third Training in NYC

For much more info, including how to apply, click here. Feel free to tell them you heard it here. And please do pass it on!

Courtesy, as ever, Rebekah at WMC:

For Women, It’s Not The Gender, It’s The Agenda

11/14/08

Boston Globe: While all eyes were focused on Palin and the “Sarah-centric” (her words) crowds that turned out for her rallies, there was a quieter “women’s story” in this race that may make the doorway a little narrow.

Summers May Be Off Of Treasury Short List

11/13/08

Politico.com: Intense backlash from women’s groups may have pushed former Clinton Treasury Secretary Larry Summers off the short-list to lead Treasury for President-elect Barack Obama, according to widespread reports circulating in Democratic circles.

Hillary Clinton Emerges As State Dept Candidate

11/14/08

Boston Globe: Sen. Hillary Clinton emerged on Thursday as a candidate to be U.S. secretary of state for Barack Obama, months after he defeated her in an intense contest for the Democratic presidential nomination.

Women Gaining Political Power

11/13/08

CNN: “Women are about 54 percent of the vote,” CNN contributor Hilary Rosen said. “Do we have equal representation? No. Are we closer to it? Yes.”

POLITICS-US: Feminists Say The Work Has Just Begun

11/13/08

IPS: Women’s right activists see an open door to the White House of President-elect Barack Obama, and they plan to walk right in and take a seat.

So sayeth Jessica Wakeman, a former associate blog editor at the Huffington Post. And she should know.

The stats:

• The site highlights 13 “featured blog posts” on the home page at a time, and that selection is updated regularly. Extra! recorded those featured bylines twice every weekday for nine weeks and coded them by gender.* During the study period (7/7/08-9/5/08), only 255 of 1,125 bylines-23 percent-belonged to women.

• Of the 89 times bylines were checked during the study, not once did the number of women’s bylines equal those belonging to men. Only eight times did women account for more than a third of all bylines. And Arianna Huffington, appearing 57 times, accounted for more than a fifth of all women’s bylines; 45 of those occupied the most visible top post. Only once, in fact, did a woman other than Arianna Huffington get her byline in the most visible top slot-Post editor-at-large Nora Ephron

Wow.  GO Jessica Wakeman.  Read the full article, here.

Whatever else you think of her, Sarah Palin has been drumming up kudos in the world of communications experts for a certain, well, prowess.   And today I listened in as my fellow Woodhull Fellow Jillian Straus–a former Oprah producer now media consultant who advises corporations, individuals, and nonprofits–spoke to a group of “leaders who lunch” at another one of my fave organizations, Catalyst, about what we can all learn from Palin’s often infuriating yet ultimately effective-for-tv communication style.  Thought I’d share the, um, lessons learned:

1. Style over substance – the visceral feeling you get from watching someone on tv is WAY more important than what you say (so think hard before going on tv about how you look, sound, and how you’re going to convey your passion for your topic)

2. Stick to your msg – “I’m a Washington outsider, an average American, and just a regular mom.”  When asked about pretty much anything, Palin marginally responded, then quickly bridged to what she REALLY wanted to talk about, then sparkled (otherwise known as the classic “hit, bridge, sparkle!”)

3. Use stories and anecdotes – they humanize you, they personalize you, and they’re much more memorable that anything else you will say.  Few who’ve watched her on tv know what Palin actually did as Governor, but everyone knows that Palin is a hockey mom.  Think also of the images from last night’s Obamamercial: most memorable were the snapshots — Obama laughing with his kids, photos of his mom, etc.

4. Fake it til you make it – smile when you are talking.  It conveys “confident” even when you’re not.

Other takeaways from the whole Sarah Palin phenomenon?  Bring em on!

Sarah Palin’s wardrobe continues to have political traction nearly a week after Politico first reported that the McCain camp spent $150,000 to outfit their vice presidential candidate for the campaign trail. The New York Times then reported that Palin’s makeup artist was the single highest paid employee in the campaign during a recent two week period (thanks to Allison for the link!). The McCain/Palin team has done their best to explain and back track on the “clothes kerfuffle.” McCain now claims that a third of the $150,000 worth of clothes has been given back, Palin says that she isn’t wearing the designer duds any more and has gone back to wearing her clothes from her “favorite consignment shop in Anchorage, Alaska” (which just seems pretty disingenuous and transparently silly at this point), and Elizabeth Hasselbeck from The View, who is on the trail with her, argued “This is deliberately sexist.”

As I said in my first post, I think it is deliberately sexist, but on the McCain camp’s side. They thought it more important to make sure that Palin was perfectly outfitted and make-upped than well-coached on the issues and prepped for interviews and speeches. Perhaps it was to bring in those “Dudes for Palin.” As Bob Lamm noted after my first post, a huge story was made out of John Edwards’ $400.00 haircut during primary season. Like Palin, he ran a campaign based on being one of the people. And like Palin, he experienced a backlash, not to mention a good ribbing from Republicans when his expensive haircut was revealed. Compared to Palin, $400 doesn’t seem so bad now, and it makes me skeptical of the “sexist” arguments.

Our readers had some great comments on whether the wardrobe matters:

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Do check out the newsy bits about female media personalities in this roundup, courtesy of the lovely Rebekah at the WMC:

Brown’s CNN Role: A Matter Of Opinion
October 21
Washington Post: When Campbell Brown left her high-profile perch at NBC and launched a nightly CNN talk show seven months ago, her luster seemed to dim amid the crackling cable landscape.

Fresh Face On Cable, Sharp Rise In Ratings
October 20
NY Times: Rachel Maddow, a woman who does not own a television set, has done something that is virtually unheard of: she has doubled the audience for a cable news channel’s 9 p.m. hour in a matter of days.

In Praise Of Peggy Noonan
October 20
Forbes: Every week on Saturday, I–like millions of others–turn in the morn to Peggy Noonan.

Ex-Times Reporter Judith Miller Joins Fox News
October 20
Hollywood Reporter via MSNBC: Pulitzer Prize-winner spent 85 days in jail for contempt during Plame affair

Online Campaign Asks NBC To Think Beyond Caucasian Males When Hiring Next Moderator Of Meet The Press
October 20
NY Observer: Last week, Margot Friedman, a public relations professional in Washington, D.C., launched a Web site encouraging NBC News executives to rethink their strategy for picking the next moderator of Meet the Press.

This influx of estrogenic news is making my head spin — in the good way, of course!  (Is estrogenic a word?  Do people use it? Oh dear.  Clearly I’ve got hormones on my mind.)

Jennifer Baumgardner’s latest has a kick**s title: Abortion & Life. Jen’s book came out in September, and I’m eager to read it. But thought I’d spread the wealth, too. Are any GWP readers up for posting a review?

More about the book, from the Publisher’s Weekly review:

Activist, filmmaker (of I Had an Abortion) and co-author (Manifesta: Young Women, Feminism and the Future) Baumgardner dedicates her work to spreading awareness about abortion. Graced with black and white photo portraits by Tara Todras-Whitehill of women wearing Baumgardner’s shirt, reading simply “I had an abortion,” the emphasis is on the testimony of these patients, revealing not only how common the procedure is (one in three women, according to the Guttmacher Institute) but how diverse those women and their situations are. Baumgardner begins with a brief history of abortion legislation in America, from pre-Roe v. Wade restrictions to clinic workers and doctors protested, threatened and murdered (as in the case of Buffalo doctor Barnett Slepian). Still, as Baumgardner says, it’s the record of “our lives [that] might provide the best road map to strengthening women’s reproductive freedoms.” Included is a comprehensive listing of abortion resources, and 10 percent of the book’s profits go to the New York Abortion Access Fund.

And you can read an excerpt on AlterNet.

Meanwhile, Rebecca Walker’s anthology, One Big Happy Family: 18 Writers Talk About Polyamory, Open Adoption, Mixed Marriage, Househusbandry,Single Motherhood, and Other Realities of Truly Modern Love, has a really long subtitle (then again, so did ours, Only Child: Writers on the Singular Joys and Solitary Sorrows of Growing Up Solo, which Rebecca is in, so ‘nuf said bout that). It comes out in February 2009.  From the book’s description:

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I’m counting down til the debate. For pre-game commentary, check out Salon (“The Big Veep Sweepstakes”), feministing (on sexism and generations), and, well, everywhere! Addendum: These bits just in from the ladies over at the WMC:

In The Washington Post, political reporter Anne Kornblut, who has covered the Obama camp since the start of the election cycle and has also covered Hillary Clinton for the New York Times, shares her thoughts on media bias, her experience as a female journalist working in a mostly male press corps and her expectations for Thursday’s vice presidential debate.

Over at Politico, women ex-governors sound off. Among Sarah Palin’s class of trailblazing female governors, Palin is not universally embraced for her accomplishments. In interviews with the former governors who agreed to speak on the record, the subject of Palin tended to draw mixed emotions, with opinions sharply divided along partisan lines.

A Time poll shows Obama making headway with women. Propelled by concerns over the financial crisis and a return of support from female voters, Barack Obama has opened a formidable 7-point lead over John McCain, reaching the 50% threshold among likely voters for the first time in the general campaign for President, according to a new TIME poll.

Over at CBS, news anchor Katie Couric asked Biden and Palin some “Vice Presidential Questions.” This installment tackles Roe v. Wade and Supreme Court decisions.

The LA Times reports that John McCain’s running mate still appeals to many on a personal level, but other voters have grown wary of her experience.

Seen anything else particularly worth sharing? Feel free to post links in comments.

SOS from my friends at the fabulous magazine Bitch: Feminist Critique of Pop Culture:

The print publishing industry as a whole is staring into a void. Across the board, newsstand magazine sales are in a slump, subscriber numbers are down, and paper and postal costs continue to rise. But it’s not magazines like US Weekly or Vogue that you’ll see disappearing from the newsstands—they have the parent companies and the resources to weather industry ill winds. It’s the small, independent magazines like Bitch that will disappear, because the odds are already stacked high against us. And simply put: We need to raise $40,000 by October 15th in order to print the next issue of Bitch….

Read the rest.

Six new articles of interest, courtesy of Rebekkah of course over at the WMC:

McCain and Palin Want Women’s Votes But Do Women Want Them?
9/8/08
RH Reality Check: Instead of clear policy stances on these issues at the GOP convention or in the surrounding media attention what we have been privy to are endless distractions about Sarah Palin’s family, the personal matters and private choices Ms. Palin and her family have made over the last few months and a religious right bloc that has firmly cemented their support for said choices – support that falls in direct conflict with the rhetoric, agenda and policies they promote for the rest of American families.

Fusing Politics and Motherhood in New Way
9/7/08
NY Times: Sarah Palin’s baby shower included a surprise guest: her own baby. He had arrived in the world a month early, so on a sunny May day, Ms. Palin, the governor of Alaska, rocked her newborn as her closest friends, sisters, even her obstetrician presented her with a potluck meal, presents and blue-and-white cake.

Parents of Special-Needs Children Divided Over Palin’s Promise to Help
9/6/08
NY Times: Gov. Sarah Palin directed an emotional appeal to the hearts of millions of parents with children who have special needs, promising they would “have a friend and advocate in the White House.” Ms. Palin’s offer of friendship sparked hope in many parents, advocates and lawyers as the often-marginalized subject of disabilities rights took center stage.

Bristol’s Choice
9/5/08
Slate.com: Pundits were quick to point out that Bristol Palin’s “decision” to have her baby must have been at least somewhat constrained by her mom’s position-as articulated in November 2006-that she would oppose an abortion for her daughters, even if they had been raped. Palin is an outspoken advocate of parental veto; she called the Alaska Supreme Court’s recent decision to strike down that state’s parental-consent statute “outrageous.” So what exactly, one wonders, was young Bristol permitted to decide?

Sex Ed In Schools: Little Connection Between What’s Taught, Teen Behavior
9/8/08
USA Today: The 17-year-old daughter of Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin, and the pregnancy has reignited the national debate over two different approaches to sex education: abstinence-only vs. comprehensive.

Palin & Press: A Testy Start
9/8/08
Washington Post: From the moment Sarah Palin stepped onto the national stage, she was mauled, minimized and manhandled by an openly skeptical media establishment. But By six days later, after a speech in which she chided the journalistic elite, the previously obscure governor of Alaska was being hailed by many of the same media gurus.

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