The Options Option--May/June 2000

July/August 2000 | Contents

COVERAGE OF WOMEN AT THE TOP: THE PRESS HAS A LONG WAY TO GO

BY CATHERINE M. DAILY AND DAN R. DALTON

The media coverage accorded to top female executives can be quite flattering. Yet the accomplishment and promise is too often tempered by the tired, negative stereotypes of women.

Consider Carleton "Carly" Fiorina. As the new chief executive of Hewlett-Packard, Fiorina oversees the largest public corporation ever led by a woman. Despite her accomplishments, U.S. News & World Report referred to her as a "former receptionist" and the "consummate corporate cheerleader." Fortune described her as "affableand stylish, dressed in a brown Armani pantsuit," commenting further that Fiorina "seems as comfortable with power as any woman could be."

To be sure, Fiorina was also highlighted as the "first woman to run one of the nation's twenty largest corporations." Even so, there was just that little something at the end, a temptation that Fortune evidently could not resist. "Expect to see her on the covers of Fortune, Business Week, and Forbes -- heck, maybe she'll even make InStyle."

Upon being appointed chief executive of Avon Products, Andrea Jung, too, was heralded in the business and financial press. The press, however, did not always seem to be on point with regard to Jung's professional portfolio. Fortune described her as "glamorous" and "garrulous." Newsweek magazine called her "stylish." These are not descriptions we've seen applied to her male colleagues, and certainly not to her male predecessors in Avon's executive suite.

Following Darla Moore's generous gift of $25 million to the University of South Carolina School of Business, a Business Week headline announced THE LADY IS A B-SCHOOL. To Fortune Moore is THE TOUGHEST BABE IN BUSINESS. We do not recall similar references to E. W. Kelley, after whom the Kelley School of Business of Indiana University is named, or Gordon S. Marshall, after whom the Marshall School of Business at the University of Southern California is named.

In another example of bittersweet coverage, Ann Winblad, a partner at Hummer Winblad, was identified by Money magazine not only as "one of Silicon Valley's preeminent venture capitalists," but also as the former girlfriend of Bill Gates. We may all rest better knowing "Gates spends one weekend a year with her." But articles about Sun chief executive Scott McNealy or Cisco Systems chief executive John Chambers fail to mention former companions or the frequency and duration of their relationships.

Women's roles in entrepreneurial companies got proper respect in a cover piece that asked, "Women entrepreneurs are getting rich . . . so why aren't they getting famous?" But the cover of the magazine, Entrepreneur and Business Start-Ups, exclaimed "Girls Rule!" Does anyone expect that the next piece admiring the managerial accomplishments of, for example, Intel chairman Andy Grove, Amazon.com's Jeff Bezos, or General Electric chairman Jack Welch will be headlined BOYS RULE!?

Perhaps some industries do lend themselves to gender-based stereotyping. Martha Stewart, chief executive of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, may actually enjoy Newsweek's label "Master of the Domestic Universe."

And certainly, Vogue editor Anna Wintour is not concerned about descriptions of her attire; she is one of the most powerful figures in the fashion industry and an accomplished manager. Yet we wonder if Newsweek's description of her as having a "diva demeanor," being "whippet-thin," with "killer heels" and "a manner as severe as her Louise Brooks bob" isn't a bit over the top.

Not all examples we discovered compromise otherwise positive coverage about women with substantial corporate responsibility. Jill Barad, former chief executive of the toy company Mattel, was associated with some decline in the fortunes of the company. But the suggestion by The Economist that "she should have stuck to marketing, rather than worrying her pretty little head about running the company" is definitely more than a bit much.

These examples were not difficult to find. We don't think these slights to women are deliberate. We aren't suggesting that journalists be indicted for using such language in their stories. Still, they testify to the subtle barriers to women in the corporate world.

Some may believe that the problems can be solved by raising the consciousness of a few insensitive male writers. It's not that easy: more than half of the examples above were written by women. It's as clear as the glass ceiling that there's still a lot of work to do.

Catherine M. Daily is Kosin Faculty Fellow of Strategic Management at the Kelley School of Business in Indiana University, where Dan R. Dalton is dean and Harold A. Poling Chair of Strategic Management. Article courtesy of BridgeNews.