Journalism has, for most of my time in it, been largely a male preserve, especially in the Sixties, when I started. It was a club with its own rituals, its own unspoken membership requirements. For example, the press clubs of the nation were sanctuaries of male drinkers only. We had everything but the secret handshake. In every daily newspaper I worked on, it was clear where the power lay. The papers were run and owned by men. Senior management was virtually entirely male. Women had to be tougher and smarter to avoid the rabbit hole of the womens department or the shopping basket column. Young women, especially if they were just starting out and pretty, faced some kind of harassment almost every day. Things have changed over the years. In my time at CBC Radio, Ive had six female bosses and only two male. But the women have had to struggle to attain and then maintain their position. Things are better than they used to be. But the struggle is still there.
Posted on: Mon, 03 Nov 2014 22:15:49 +0000
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