Media research reveals that the editorial workforce is dominated by men
My fellow CisionBlog blogger Jay Krall recently conducted a study to find the most influential social 
media and Internet marketing bloggers (*plug* results coming in a post later this week!). When he emailed me the results, his initial analysis simply read:
“Maybe the story here is, where the ladies at? Liz [Strauss] is the only woman in the top 10. Amber [Naslund], Connie [Reece], Sarah Evans… they didn’t break the top 40. People need to show these ladies some respect.”
*If you’re not reading Liz’s, Amber’s, Sarah’s and Connie’s blogs, by the way, you should be. Their blogs are all Top 10 material.*
So I started thinking: Is this just a trend in the microcosm of Social Media bloggers? And is it just bloggers? What about magazines? Newspapers? Television? Radio?
Fortunately, Cision identifies the gender of all of the contacts that we list. I examined the percentage of women vs. men for the major media types, and the results were surprising: Overall, the media industry is 65% male and 35% female. (It should be noted that the vast majority of contacts listed in Cision’s database work in an editorial capacity and not administration or advertising sales, so these statistics are pretty much limited to editorial positions.) To put these results in perspective, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2007, 54% of the workforce was male and 46% female. Full results are in the chart below.
(One other note: The media type “Internet Blog” is based on the blogs listed with Cision, which are all professional, rather than personal, in nature. Personal blogs are not factored into these results.)
Freelance journalists are the only media type with more women than men at 57% female. I am shocked that women only make up about a quarter of analysts and people in radio.
Finding a voice is easier (and cheaper!) than ever before through blogs and social networks. So, fellow intelligent women, start engaging in the media and let our voice be heard!
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Tags: bloggers, blogging, blogs, Magazines, Media, media research, newspapers, Radio, social media, statistics, Television, Women
Wow, Heidi,
This is amazing! So many great women bloggers who know their stuff, write well, and lead with experience. We need to start talking about them more.
Heidi, thanks for sharing the results of your research. (And thanks, Jay, for including me in your list.) The disparity is much greater than I would have thought. As Liz said, we need to talk about women writers and link to their material.
Heidi,
Wow! What interesting stats, though I can’t say I’m totally surprised. (But I’m certainly flattered to be among the blogs you consider Top 10 material).
Some other amazing women in this field: Beth Harte, Valeria Maltoni, Sarah Evans, Shannon Paul, Christina “CK” Kerley, Beth Kanter, Kami Huyse, Lucretia Pruitt…man, the list just goes on and on. And let’s not forget YOU!
And while I’m all about recognizing the accomplishments of women in the media, I’m always just delighted to share in the excitement of smart voices, no matter where they are.
Thanks for the mention, and the interesting look at some demographic tidbits.
Amber
I love this topic and wanted to post my comment here…
I live in Connecticut, which isn’t the most progressive state when it comes to news media. The idea here: “only the oldies are goodies.” But its this mentality that’s forcing us to lose some of our best, new female broadcasters. Its clear that these talented women are under-appreciated and hidden at local stations! But why?? My favorite new anchor is Anjuli Porter at WVIT NBC 30. The fact that she’s breathtakingly beautiful certainly doesn’t hurt. But she’s much more than looks. She’s whitty and funny! She uses a fresh, new approach when delivering the news and the difference between her newscasts and the others is alarming! Its shocking how “behind the times” CT is! Unlike other anchors in the state, she offers a genuine feel and personalizes every story. My family enjoys watching her as often as possible.
I love Connecticut, but I’m not proud of the backwards mentality shared by some of its residents. I hate to say it, but Ms. Porter is too good to stay here. I wish her the best if she decides to leave.
Add to the missing women the faces and voices of expert women.
As Susan Faludi tells it in her book, “The Terror Dream: Myth and Misogyny in an Insecure America,” (http://tinyurl.com/3gjp5c), the number of women experts interviewed for their opinions on the major news and talk shows fell off a cliff in the days following the 9-11 attacks.
She attributed the decline to traditional, mythic roles of men and women being acted out in the news media: brawny men would be seen as rescuers, women and children as those being “rescued.”
Under these conditions, women could have no place on the pulpit of thought leadership about key issues or policy shaping.
Seven and a half years on, how many women experts do you see being interviewed? Scant few, and I’m working on changing that!