I’m not sure how many people have gotten to hear the new radio station GreenStone Media launched in July by a group of so called high-powered women, including Gloria Steinem and Jane Fonda. You probably haven’t because it’s only in a few limited markets right now.
The whole idea of this radio brainchild is to offer women, a dwindling radio audience, a kinder gentler radio. With so much radio filled with argumentative political and moral chatter, Steinem and Fonda, two women who went out on a limb in the past bucking the status quo, want to offer something different, something Oprah-esque. The mission: “offer what is missing in talk today – radio that is thought-provoking, emotionally involving, believable and trustworthy.”
Steinem said in a CNN interview that women have run away from radio, other than listening to light rock, because it is “too hostile and argumentative and crazy.”
But I don’t get it. What’s wrong with being hostile, argumentative and crazy? I am sure that’s what many Americans thought when women were burning bras and yelling about how the didn’t have the same rights as men decades ago.
I caught a sampling of GreenStone’s radio programming on its website greenstoneradio.com. What I listened to was a morning show called the Radio Ritas. Their soft, nice-girl voices seemed anything but “believable” and their discussion was anything but “thought-provoking”.
The Ritas were discussing the shooting at a Montreal college last week and of the shooters one of the women said, “I bet you anything he played that crazy dungeons and dragons.” An another took a moment to share how “I don’t understand why they have to shoot people when they’re crazy. I don’t understand it.”
Hey, last I heard, crazy people are the ones who usually do the shooting. Hello.
Anyway, what is wrong with mixing it up and arguing a point? Dr. Laura, who is the antithesis of a shrinking violet, has some of the highest ratings out there. She yells at her listeners and tells them to quit their jobs and stay home full time with their children. And many of these listeners do what she commands.
Gloria. Jane. What about putting on an anti Dr. Laura who encourages her listeners to go out and get a job?
Maybe we should take a moment to remember Ann Richards, the former Texas Governor who was always raring for a fight. She died last week after battling esophageal cancer, and what people remember most about her was her spirit.
Maybe women, especially in the workplace, can’t really afford to be too touchy feeling, not yet. Women still don’t make equal pay for equal work; women still only occupy a small percentage of the CEO jobs; the daycare system…well, there really isn’t any organized daycare system; and women’s reproductive rights are continually under fire. The “radio-for-women” concept GreenStone espouses, unfortunately, is not the type of radio that will help women rise above the many challenges they still face today.
Maybe, at age 72, Steinem is coming to terms with her own mortality and may not want to face the reality that the women’s movement has only scraped the surface. Alas, we need to keep arguing.
September 19th, 2006 at 7:49 am
are u !@#$%^& kidding me. with this one. eve i love ya.. and u know i really do. but calling those two unpatriotic,glory seeking has beens “high powered” . is like calling jimmy carter an influential president , or rosie o’donnell and unbiased talk show host.. c mon……
furthermore. equal pay for equal work. ???
why not talk to male models who get paid one tenth of what men get paid. or actresses like julia roberts who get paid more than their male couonterparts. or your previous blog katie couric who gets 10 mil more than matt lauer because she has a twinkle in her eye. i can go on and on..
September 19th, 2006 at 8:06 am
Good work, Eve!!! I agree that Ms. Steinem’s and Ms. Fonda’s talk show sounds like a radio version of “The View” a show I was never enticed to watch. What little snippets I ever saw advertised were boring and superficial. Speaking of superficial, to be fair I should listen to the show before I write it off (hear it off?), but with time so precious, and being an avid NPR radio listener, I am not inclined to wander. My husband, who, although he does not like to pegged with a simple tag such as left-wing liberal, loves to listen to conservative talk show ranters. He’ll stop on the side of the road (or nearly wreck his car) to call in and remind the host that Dick Cheney never served in the military, that, in fact, he got five deferments. He enjoys jumping into the fray.
Should there be a forum for women’s issues and concerns? Yes. So many issues get lost in the “bureaucracy” be it corporate or governmental, so that people feel hopeless at instituting any change. Questions such as what people’s options are in the workplace, and how to support competent women running for local and national office who need the support of other women need to be addressed. A Tavis Smiley-type show would be interesting.
Thanks for bringing up Ann Richards, the fiesty Texas Democrat who was a model for us all. In one of the all-too brief obits I read, when asked if she had any regrets of her time in office, she replied that she would have raised more hell.
September 19th, 2006 at 8:08 am
Eve,
I’m all for arguing and getting my point across. But the problem, especially in the workplace, is the old double standard is in place. When a man argues a point, he is perceived as being forceful. A woman, on the other hand - at least in some work circles, is looked upon as a hysterical bitch. It’s an ugly truth and a label few want placed on them, especially those seeking advancement. Sorry, but I haven’t seen that many women move up the corporate ladder who are hostile and argumentative, though I’ve definitely seen my share of crazy. I’m no huge fan of St. Oprah, but I think the key to her success is that she comes across as a strong, intelligent, calm and rational person. And, please, I can do without Hanoi Jane - especially after she married Ted Turner - or Dr. Laura, one of the biggest hypocrites around - as role models.
September 19th, 2006 at 8:17 am
the women’s lib movement has lost steam because most people don’t really believe that women are suffering anymore or being treated unfairly in society and especially the workforce. does anyone believe that the boss from 9 to 5 still exists and women are forced to to suffer abuse of all kinds, including sexual in order to keep their jobs or to advance? i think not. women are ceo’s, senators, lawyers ,judges, doctors, cops…they are even in the military. there is no stigma associated with divorce really and sexual harassment is dealt with harshly an is not tolerated at all. i can think of no other time in any civilazation in history where woman are treated more equally and fairly. i think societies that have not viewed woman as equals, are suffering. i have a daughter i when i tell her she can grow up to be anything she wants, i believe it.
September 19th, 2006 at 9:01 am
These women are has beens and are not in tune with the working women of this country. They are just trying to make a buck on their reputations as women of power. Do we cut them some slack in our free enterprise America or get them off the air by not tuning in?
Did one of them say the shooters in Montreal were into D&D? How crazy is she!
September 19th, 2006 at 10:28 am
Right on, Eve. To speak out and to question authority is what moral, thinking adults do. Spare me the Radio Ritas. Three cheers for Eve Tahmincioglu and Ann Richards–both capable of being confrontational, and both utterly charming.
September 19th, 2006 at 10:31 am
Yieee! Eve, you opened my eyes in regards to Jane. I have heard about her show and at a first glance it seemed like a great idea. However, just because I am a women does not been I need to be talked softly to. It is the opposite, give me some passion, thrive, and courage to persue my strong and thinking personality! I hate the idea when women in these positions define the need of other women.
September 19th, 2006 at 11:15 am
As a high-ranking senior executive at a mid-size company, I can honestly say I’ve gotten as far as I have by being what one boss called a “quietly effective leader.” For me, rants and raves don’t work: I’ve never yelled at anyone in my career but yet somehow get people to do what I ask of them. I think being honest, fair–and, most importantly, creating a motivating culture–takes you much further than the drill-sergeant approach. I consistently move up in my career because I get people to buy into my ideas without intimidating them.
September 19th, 2006 at 1:17 pm
I definitely was not advocating yelling, but I do get your point Mindy for women at work and for men.
I interviewed the CEO of Time Warner for my book “From the Sandbox to the Corner Office”, and I was struck by his quiet leadership. He is a soft spoken man who refers to himself as a “Type B” leader.
Women don’t have to bulldoze everyone in their path, but if we’re talking about making real changes in the overall state of women today it will take a bit of muscle, quiet or otherwise.
September 19th, 2006 at 1:32 pm
Women are running away from talk radio? Good for them. I disagree with the premise, however, that it’s a sign of combative weakness. Think about it: Who wants to listen to other people argue when the outcome won’t change a thing? It’s exhausting enough to argue with people I care about, let alone strangers! Talk radio is like moonshine — it’s cheap, and if you consume too much you’ll start to act like a fool. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to buy “The Conscience of a Conservative.”