Journalists, Broadcast Media

The landscape of U.S. broadcast news changed in 1971 after a Federal Communications Commission (FCC) mandate that directed that stations needed to diversify their staffs in order to retain broadcast licenses. From 1971 to 1976, networks hired large numbers of women and men of color to meet the new requirements. Many of this early generation are still familiar names: Connie Chung, Jane Pauley, Diane Sawyer, Carole Simpson, Leslie Stahl, and Barbara Walters got their starts in national broadcast news during this period.

[Page 793]Their heirs are the well-known anchors and reporters currently in mid-career on network television news shows. In 2006, shifts in daily news shows-morning, evening, and nighttime-led to several higher profile positions for women anchors. Elizabeth Vargas briefly co-anchored the ABC evening news cast with Bob Woodruff; Cynthia McFadden was named a Nightline co-host; and Robin Roberts replaced Charlie Gibson as Diane Sawyer's co-anchor on Good Morning America. The biggest news that year, however, came when Katie Couric was made the first woman solo anchor of the evening news at CBS. This move generated much commentary, a cover story in Newsweek, and discussion on blogs and mass media among the media punditry, with some hailing it as a break in the glass ceiling for women. Others saw Couric as a news lightweight without the “gravitas” necessary to anchor the evening news. CBS stated publicly that she was hired in part to attract younger viewers at a time when network news was losing viewers at a fast pace, particularly the younger demographic.

Market Share and Commercial Appeal

Transcript

• Hitting the airwaves in the West Bank town of Ramallah, Nisaa FM is the first radio station for women in the region. The mission is to entertain, inform and empower. 39-year-old Nisreen Awwad presents the station’s morning show. It’s a lively mix of music and discussion. She’s convinced her broadcasts are changing things for the better for women living in conflict.
• Women need video in order to be visionaries. We’re showing that women are capable of facing up to the powerful, and are changing the stereotype. We tell inspiring stories – stories of success that show women are capable of facing challenges and of succeeding despite difficult circumstances.
• Those working here at Nisaa FM say they’re pioneers, working to enhance the image of women on Palestinian territory.
• Women constitute half of Palestinian society, and of course they have a positive role in many ways. We tell the stories of successful Palestinian women on air, which can be inspiring to our listeners.
• The station also wants to create more interaction between women who are separated by walls and checkpoints. So what do the listeners make of it all?
• Women are able to express more than men. We express things best, because women understand each other better.
• Women respond better to their own radio. We are discussing things that concern us, and the problems we face, and even finding a solution.
• Through blogs, Facebook and other social media, Palestinian women will also be able to contribute directly to the station. The hope is that they’ll become media producers, instead of just media consumers, giving them a voice in the Palestinian territory, and beyond.

More women have taken anchor positions at a time when the broadcast media are increasingly worried about market share and commercial appeal. The content of national newscasts has concomitantly softened as well. While it is true that as the number of women anchors and reporters have increased, as have the number of feature stories, it is not clear what the cause and effect relationship is.

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