The Women-Led Newsroom

We spent the better part of our third week in J375 discussing the dynamics of a women-led newsroom and how those create a different culture than the traditional, masculine newsrooms of yesteryear. A fairly recent study involving a handful of American newspapers with masculine and feminine newsrooms was conducted to find the differences between the two, and the results were pretty much as one would imagine. The masculine newsrooms were found to be more cutthroat and competitive, and the female newsrooms were found to be more nurturing and teamwork-oriented.

The results seemed to almost be stereotypes, but there was data to back them up. However, it seems that the years since the study have done something to correct this. We had Bob Zaltsberg, editor of the Bloomington Herald-Times, speak to our class on Wednesday. His newspaper was one of the ones involved in the study, and it was considered to be one of the "feminine" newsrooms. When it was suggested that the "feminine" culture in his newsroom was based on the presence of females in leadership positions, he didn't disagree, but he wasn't quick to accept it, either. In fact, calling it a "feminine" culture wasn't his preferred term. He appreciates the welcoming, teamwork-based culture that the Herald-Times' leadership has fostered, but he thinks it transcends gender and is more about creating a welcoming environment for everyone who works for him.

I'm inclined to agree. While I understand that the reactions in the study were based on observational data, it's nearly impossible to quantify something like culture and atmosphere in a newsroom. I found some of the conclusions offensive, and if I were a strong, motivated woman, I probably would have been offended by some of the conclusions about my apparent "nurturing" nature as well. I think the so-called feminine newsroom is a desirable environment for a publication, but I don't think it should be linked to gender. Instead, it should be judged on a person-to-person basis, and the genderized terminology should be dropped altogether.