This is a career information film from 1940 makes journalism sound like a great career. Especially if you’re a man. Here’s the advice for girls considering this career choice:
“Women find it difficult to compete with men in general reporting jobs, so girls who want to be successful in journalism should prepare for work in the special women’s departments. Home decoration, child care, gardening and household hints are found in the homemaking section, a department handled by women. Also included are cookery, meal planning suggestions, menus, recipes and attractive ways of arranging the table.”
No, thanks! How confusing this must have been to high school girls in 1940, the same year Rosalind Russell played the fearless star report Hildegard Johnson in His Girl Friday!
Beyond the feminist issue, it’s rather sad to watch this film showing well-staffed newspapers with lots of reporters covering special beats at a time when newspapers are slashing their staffs and even starting to limit their printed editions.
“Faced with a failing business model, newspapers continued to slash staff through buyouts and layoffs. Some, like the Los Angeles Times, dismantled their Washington bureaus. Others threatened to shut down entirely. The irony: Rising online traffic suggests that newspapers are still vital and well-read. They just need to figure out how to get people to pay for their content. Perhaps in 2009?”
Source: Fey drilled Palin, Couric Got Cred, and Papers Saw Red
Boston Globe, December 28, 2008
