Get the Feed
The Media’s Misogynistic Mess
On eve of what might be the end of the Hillary Clinton candidacy (Obama should, at least, have ensured himself a majority of the pledged delegates after the primaries in Kentucky and Oregon on Tuesday), my joy is mixed with both bitterness and regret.
While I am a happy Obama supporter, I’ve waited too long for this day to come, and I am resentful of the way Clinton has dragged out this primary process for what I can see as nothing other than self-absorbed reasons at best. Her race-baiting throughout the campaign worsened my already low opinion of her campaign tactics.
But I have been regrettably silent in this space about the disturbing misogyny that has permeated much of the media’s coverage. To do a little make-up work, let me point you to a YouTube video that is a very effective primer to the conversation:
The words of Edward R. Murrow and the fictional Howard Beale are a little much, but the pattern in the clips is devastatingly clear.
The overwhelmingly male pundits and the pontificators couldn’t get a handle on how to talk about a powerful and prominent woman on the campaign trail. They fell back again and again on numerous stereotypes — from the nagging wife to the emotional wreck — instead of taking her seriously.
Marie Cocco (The Washington Post) and Connie Schultz (The Capitol Times) have articulated the sad consequences of the media’s gendered coverage extremely well.
E.J. Graff, though, might have the most substantial critique of a media that systematically refuses to recognize women’s worth. Although her revealing research doesn’t explicitly reference the present campaign coverage, it goes a long way toward explaining it.
Posted at 3:05 PM | Permalink | | 
Email
| 
Print
I don’t feel sorry for Hillary one bit. IMO her being a woman has gotten her a lot more votes than it has cost her. Many women rally to her just because she is ” the woman candidate”. Let’s be honest—without her being a woman and having thee Bill Clinton as her partner—she would’nt have lasted the first month in the primarys.
Posted by John B. on May 19th, 2008 at 3:30 pm
This is hyper-sensitivity. Most people would vote for a woman as they would a black or hispanic. The problem is that THIS WOMAN is not the right one.
I can’t imagine figures exhuding leadership like Margaret Thatcher or Benazir Bhutto having any difficulty getting elected in the USA.
Try again next time - but not with her.
Posted by tOd on May 19th, 2008 at 4:35 pm
i agree there is a strain of misogyny, but crying foul over some misogynistic behavior by the media and citizen in general is just over-the-top ridiculous. i agree with the two comments above — way too hyper-sensitive and her being a woman has certainly helped her keep afloat and not been thrown out of the race already.
for me, i just don’t like her. her being woman is irrelevant to my reasons why i would never vote for her. if anything, all the whining from people who scream misogyny makes me dislike her even more.
Posted by jeff on May 19th, 2008 at 5:46 pm
Too little too late. I have already decided that I will vote for McCain rather than for Obama simply because I believe that Obama’s followers do not respect women or older people. Shame on the lot of you.
Posted by Patty on May 19th, 2008 at 8:33 pm
And McCain’s stance on reproductive rights shows respect for …?? Please.
Posted by JoAnne on May 19th, 2008 at 8:46 pm
Clinton should call it quits. She lost the race when she made racist remarks against Obama. However, and here’s the kicker, by the DNC and Obama ignoring the sexism used against Clinton Obama’s camp has probably lost a substantial amount of Democrat party voters - you know the ugh, old guard feminists. If they jump to McCain then the racists and the sexists in the Democrat party win but the Dems lose. Only God could come up with such irony.
Posted by Mikki on May 19th, 2008 at 11:33 pm
HILLARY CLINTON IS THE GREATEST CAMPAIGNER IN AMERICAN HISTORY !!!
HILLARY CLINTON CAN BEST WIN IN NOVEMBER:
IT’S ABOUT ELECTABILITY !!!
It’s time for everyone to face the truth. Barack Obama has no real chance of winning the national election in November at this time. His crushing defeat in Pennsylvania, and loss in Indiana and West Virginia makes that fact crystal clear. His best, and only real chance of winning in November is on a ticket with Hillary Clinton as her VP.
Sen. Obama has zero chance of winning against the republican attack machine, and their unlimited money, and resources without Hillary Clinton. Zero chance.
It is absolutely essential that the democrats take back the Whitehouse in November. America, and the American people are in a very desperate condition now. And the whole World has been doing all that they can to help keep us propped up.
Hillary Clinton say’s that the heat, and decisions in the Whitehouse are much tougher than the ones on the campaign trail. But I think Sen. Obama faces a test of whether he has what it takes to be a commander and chief by facing the difficult facts, and the truth before him. And by doing what is best for the American people by dropping out of the race, and offering his whole hearted assistance to Hillary Clinton to help her take back the Whitehouse for the American people, and the World.
Sen. Obama is a great speaker. And I am confident he can explain to the American people the need, and wisdom of such a personal sacrifice for them. It should be clear to everyone by now that Hillary Clinton is fighting her heart out for the American people. She has known for a long time that Sen. Obama can not win this November. You have to remember that the Clinton’s have won the Whitehouse twice before. They know what it takes.
If Sen. Obama fails his test of commander and chief we can only hope that Hillary Clinton can continue her heroic fight for the American people. And that she prevails. She will need all the continual support and help we can give her. She may fight like a superhuman. But she is only human.
Don’t be fooled by the pledged delegate, and math arguments. Neither candidate has the necessary pledged delegates. The entire delegates counts, and votes from Florida, and Michigan are not even being counted. Plus the democratic caucuses, and primarys have been heavily corrupted by fraud, and vote cheating. The only relevant question now is who can best WIN IN NOVEMBER and take back the Whitehouse for the American people. And the answer is HILLARY CLINTON. Everyone knows that now.
Sincerely
Jacksmith… Working Class
p.s. Cynthia Ruccia - I’m with ya baby. All the way. “Clinton Supporters Count Too.”
Posted by jacksmith on May 20th, 2008 at 12:21 am
America’s chauvanistic media has turned Clinton’s campaign into a casualty. As a 3rd Wave Feminist, this is entirely disappointing not only for Hillary but for every woman who would like to seek a higher office.
On that note Hillary should not drop out - she should stand up for all of the voters that the DNC disenfranchised in the first place.
The right to vote should never be taken away. The Republicans did not even stoop that low. But then again, they’ve also beat the Democrats in appointing an African-American woman at one of the highest ranking Government posts. The Dems should be ashamed.
In addition, Nancy Pelosi should be ashamed of herself for insisting on being the most powerful woman in the US Government. Pelosi’s personal agenda should never have come into play.
I’m abandoning the Dems this election, based upon how crappy they’ve treated Hillary.
Posted by Jill on May 20th, 2008 at 5:40 am
Overall, this has been a very dismal election season in light of how the media, the candidates and the political parties have mishandled the issues of race, gender and religion. However, the blatant misogynistic remarks against Hillary by the MSM, as well as the misogynistic products such as bumper stickers, t-shirts and nutcrackers that feature her likeness, are particularly reprehensible. Seeing criticisms of a political candidate solely on the basis of her gender–not her actual positions on vital social issues–passing for mainstream political commentary should shock anyone who supports equality and civil rights.
Furthermore, I’ve read several discussion boards about this issue and it blows my mind how many seem OK with this gender bias as long as they weren’t planning to vote for Clinton anyway. I’m not voting for her either but that doesn’t make this right. It’s like defending anti-semitic commentary because you don’t agree with Joe Lieberman’s support of McCain.
Oddly enough, this reminds me of discussion boards I’ve seen where Star Trek fans talk about the Voyager spin-off. I can understand how some would feel that this show didn’t live up to the Trek brand name, but to see the amount of vitriol aimed at Captain Janeway–a fictional character, no less–was astonishing, particularly for fans of a TV show that has been well known for promoting tolerance. I guess if we weren’t ready for a fictional female leader, things wouldn’t be that much better for a real female leader either.
Posted by Tim on May 20th, 2008 at 7:34 am
In my role as a contributing editor of PopPolitics (not as the author of this post), I had to remove a couple of comments on this piece because
1) they were completely off-topic.
2) they were personal (and, to be honest, infantile) attacks.
We definitely don’t want to censor any opinion, no matter how radical, but we do want to maintain a civil and productive tone. Thanks for understanding.
Now, feel free to get back to the engaging conversation …
Posted by Bernie Heidkamp on May 21st, 2008 at 10:40 am
Bernie, you’re right on! You are to be commended for having the courage to be critical of one aspect of the campaign while not abandoning your own political affiliation.
I have observed the overwhelmingly hostile, indeed venomous media coverage of Sen. Clinton throughout the campaign and I’ve come to the conclusion that were it not for the media misogynists permitting Sen. Obama’s Walk on the Water, he could not have possibly been able to advance his campaign to this degree. This free ride was actually not free at all for the female candidate whose faults were exaggerated and her many strengths and attributes as politician severely diminished by media’s frat-boy tactics.
I viewed CNN’s May 25th “Media and Misogyny” segment with CNN’s Howard Kurtz and Carol Costello and it was enlightening and also confirmed your perspective above.
I wonder to what extent Sen. Obama should be grateful to the media’s innate and abundantly displayed OBAMYOPIA that blurred the distinction between objective and downright sexist reporting–to his immense benefit…
Posted by a Canadian view on May 30th, 2008 at 5:49 pm