AM RADIO TUNES OUT WOMEN
The lack of women in AM commercial talkback radio in this country is bizarre.
I’m struggling to think of one woman, in any capital city, who is holding down a high-profile shift by herself.
Women are apparently good enough to write, edit and read the news, be opinionated and outspoken on TV, in newspapers and online, present shifts on ABC radio… but not on the AM dial.
It really is the last bastion of blokiness in the media. And you have to ask yourself, why?
Is it because AM radio executives think women will go as silly as wheels once a month, talk about knitting or blather on about what’s for tea?
Is it because they imagine women can’t handle big stories? Be tough and opinionated?
Or is it that they fear women won’t be able to manufacture the required outrage on a daily basis? Put a flea in the ear of some listeners and call them “boofheads” and “idiots”?
Perhaps that’s more like it.
Women, as heads of households, business people and consumers want to talk about politics, the economy, international affairs and the rest, and, I’ve found they are very happy to do that with other women.
ABC radio is testament to this. The burgeoning number of online news and opinion sites for women, like The Hoopla, is too.
When will the old-boy network in AM radio get with the program?
Latest news is that Sydney’s 2UE is considering putting journalist Tracey Spicer and her sparring partner Prue McSween (left) on the morning shift to go up against ratings leader Ray Hadley.
It’s the same spot Linda Mottram is holding down on ABC-702 with aplomb.
It’s a move that’s been called a ‘brave’ by some.
It wasn’t that long ago that a senior radio executive told me that men didn’t want to hear two women together on talk radio, let alone one.
“I mean, you’ve been nagged all weekend by your wife and then you turn on the radio and you get nagged by TWO women,” he said.
And he was serious.
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21 Responses to this article
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Alan kennedy February 28, 2012
At the risk of moistening your pocket Wendy may I say I was a devotee of you and Ange over summer. If you two gerties were giggling so was I. Of course I note they only let you two loopy shielas out over summer so you didnt frighten too many of the cattle. Sadly the answer is blokes, the sort of blokes who shaft kerrie Anne kennelly one of ausralian tv’s great pros. By the way I love Kerry o’Keefe and his giggling but apparently the ABC does get complaints about this. There are a lot of sad bastards out there. Unfortunately some of them are running radio stations. And of course Kerry remains on air despite the complaints
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Margi Macdonald February 28, 2012
Wendy, I reckon there’s a PhD thesis in this.
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Valerie Parv February 28, 2012
Well put Wendy. I adore being on radio and was doing an interview with Rafael Epstein and comedian, Danny Katz, for ABC Melbourne when I mentioned a current book. Rafael asked me for info about the book – the one he happened to be holding in his hand at the time. We had a great laugh and riffed on it for the whole session. But tell me if a woman had done that, she wouldn’t have been accused of having a PMS moment.
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Louise North February 28, 2012
Agree with your assessment Wendy, but Tracey Spicer’s comment that talkback radio is lone of the last remaining glass ceilings in the commercial media, is missing a more important point. Yes, women have made great strides in journalism but they still are largely absent from key decision making roles in news media — and that is aside from the increasing sexual harassment women endure in newsrooms, and lack of promotional opportunties et al, I found in my recent survey of Australian female journos. See the story in yesterday’s Australian
“Coming clean on sex pests in the newsroom”
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/media/monday-section/coming-clean-on-sex-pests-in-the-newsroom/story-fna1k39o-1226281997242
cheers
Louise -
Alex February 28, 2012
702 has ONE woman. One. It always gives the old Margaret Throsby slot to a woman and no other slot. I assume 702 management think women have got the kids off to school and are sweeping the floor between 9 – 12 so it programs for them then. The rest of the day is a total dickfest (except the current affairs programs). It is not okay.
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neeter February 28, 2012
Jeez I thought it was illegal for women to be on am radio. And funny you should mention gardening. I am in WA and there once was a deliciously voiced Verity James on ABC 720…I don’t know why she left but now she advertises Gardening products on commercial telly. Irony? And yes. I am a woman who would take on these old goat/farts on Perth am radio anytime. Put me on. But only if the pay isn’t as crappy as I believe it is. that even for high rating radio…the pay is crappy. And for every FM brekky show there can be two fellas but only ever one Sheila. Why so, o radio gods?
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Meghan B. February 28, 2012
Thank goodness somebody is saying this, Wendy. I majored in radio journalism at university and after a year of slogging my guts out at community stations for no pay, I finally accepted I couldn’t get an interview, let alone a paying job and had to go into marketing instead. It was always infuriating too, to see that when women WERE on radio, they were all ex-models, reality TV stars, etc. – what’s the point of getting a degree in hosting, producing, panel operating and sound editing when I could just go on a cooking show and get my break?! I’m now doing postgraduate research and will end up teaching the next generation of journalism hopefuls who will hopefully not face the same problems, but who can promise that? It’s very frustrating.
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james February 28, 2012
I don’t want to break it to you, but AM Talk radio is about ratings, and the many women who have been tried in Talk Radio simply don’t rate.
While Prue is a great talker, and has great opinions, the ratings show that listeners (not just men) don’t listen.
Let’s hope for the sake of this pHD as suggested that Prue and Tracey work. But – I fear it simply will not.
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MrsP2011 February 28, 2012
Do people still listen to talk-back radio? I know cabbies do but I thought they were the only ones. I, too, loved you on 2Day Wendy but I don’t think I have seriously listened to radio at all since those days. I do love Prue McSween. Have laughed and cheered her many times on morning television but, no, not on radio.
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Debbie Spillane February 29, 2012
James, lots of men have been tried on radio who don’t rate either. But noone ever takes that as evidence that “men don’t rate”. Precious few women have ever been given the chance on talkback, and yet a handful being tried (mostly on non prime time shifts) somehow gets used as evidence that ALL women don’t rate.
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GG March 10, 2012
Agree with you Debbie.
I simply cannot stand the “we tried one woman and she didn’t work so ALL women don’t work”. never seems to stop male morons being hired and hired again and again…
Unforetunately this argument is applying to Julia Gillard too. i’ve heard the ” well, she’s performing badly as PM so The Cause of Feminism is being put back years!”
Not – hey, THIS woman ie person didn’t work out, let’s try another one.
These same people ( and a lot of them are women BTW, I’ve heard them) are quite happy to let incompetent male after incompetent male take the reins of a serious job and if he fails they don’t take it as a comment on manhood, just on that person, whereas if a woman fails it’s a comment on all of womanhood.
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Linda February 29, 2012
Thanks for stating the truth, Wendy! It’s bugged me for years and I actually think it’s intentional; talkback is such a key vehicle of white male hegemony in this country.
As for laughing, it’s pretty obvious that women are not allowed to be seen enjoying themselves independently of men. I’m sure the FM funny boys, who often seem to do nothing but giggle at each other, never get any such similar texts.
Thanks again.
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Susila March 5, 2012
Thank you thank you thank you Wendy (and bugger off James. The ABC for instance, isnt all about ratings, and besides that I think your whole argument is flawed). I loved, as in, absolutely and totaly loved you and Ange’s podcasts so much, that I thought they were the best thing I had ever heard on the radio. I even have them saved. The raucous laghter, (as well as the genuine emotion, even tears on occasion) were actaually my favorite bits. It was SO wonderful to hear smart funny women talking to me about things I was interested to hear, and not just doing what I think some women on radio sadly end up doing; impersonating the blokes. Making sure there’s a big footy or bloody cricket componant, finance, having men on to co-host at every given oppertunity, as though more than one woman at once is a bloody crime etc. Things we get enough of from the blokes thanks very much. You were (are!) women and you were not afraid to talk about Lymph Node Bras (tee he!) big girls undies and all sorts of other things that were not only funny but intelligent, insightful, and, at last, INTERESTING! I agree with you completley on this, and I want you and Ange on the radio, all the time!! Can this be arranged!?
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Nicole March 8, 2012
I loved Ramona Koval on the Radio National’s Book Show. She was really warm, intellectual and witty and interested in getting to the heart of things. After changes were flagged to the show, without any consultation, she quit. I miss her very much. She’s a great loss to the airwaves and Australia’s reading and writing culture.
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Fred March 8, 2012
Women i listen to on radio (and why, pray tell, is it always only about AM?):
Emma Ayres;
Margaret Throsby;
Julia Lester;
Julie Howard;
Mairi Nicolson;
Eleanor Hall;
Wendy and Ange.Women i used to listen to on radio:
Deb Cameron;Says it all really, eh?
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GG March 10, 2012
Hi Wendy,
I was a reasonably regular MTR(2gb) listener. Female presenters I heard were Colette Mann on weekends and a replacement lady (forgot her name) on the odd week.
This is not really a defence as such because I agree in general about blokes on AM radio, the combativeness can be a bit much sometimes. But on the whole, given it’s such an intense job, I can understand that because keeping track of all the organisational tasks make your head spin.
And if a bloke is blokey, well, that’s part of the tapestry of radio really, isn’t it? It’s just annoying when that’s the ONLY thing you hear.Having said that, many female listeners called and do call talkback and were (and are, on 2gb.com) treated invariably with respect and attention, equal to that given to males. I know because i’m one of them, although I have had the odd stoush with a couple of presenters!!
In addition, there are some female segment presenters within various shows plus the female newsreaders. So, though i do think there should be more female presenters, on AM, the field is not quite as devoid of female voices as you might think.
My favourite female presenters of all time were Kate Langbroek and Fiona Scott Norma on 3RRR years ago., They did a great show and had terrific and hilarious rapport and sounded great.
One of my main complaints about cartain males on radio actually is that some of them have the most hideous voices and interrupt their callers too much. I haven’t heard the entire dial yet, but there are a couple of females I’d willingly never listen to again.But I suppose that’s an occupational hazard and everyone has their preferred presenters and shows anyway.
I’d end on this note – NEVER be afraid to call a talkback station if you hear something you disagree with. MTR presenters (er, 2gb that is) frequently invite people who disagree with them to call up and state their point of view and are given more than equal time to state their opinions.
More opportunity, in fact, than on the ABC, often.If you call up and get into an argument, well, you can’t expect everyone to agree with you and it’s good debating practice after all.
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GG March 10, 2012
PS.
NEVER ever a fan of the sexual harassment dynamic, and one reason i like talkback is that there are protocols, even if some disregard them!! And nobody can touch your bum!!
