It's difficult to know exactly where Shane Goodman, editor of CityView, stands based on a quick read of his latest editorial. On one hand, he seems to think there are too many women staffing news desks around the land, and that their very presence is leading to him being force-fed soft news stories on throw pillows. On the other, he wants readers to enjoy the publication's latest soft news piece on how women can get and keep a man -- which is, ironically, written by what must be one of the last few male reporters on the CityView roster. His primary dig seems to be directed to The Des Moines Register, but there is little need for me to start defending that publication's honor. Rekha Basu, a seasoned journalist on the DMR staff that I greatly admire, already took care of business in that respect.
What's important to note is that CityView promotes itself as central Iowa's "alternative" weekly. Basically, CityView wants you to think that it is an alternative to what is customary and conventional. Viewing Goodman's column in that light, several things come into focus.
1) The column is an apology to (like-minded male) readers. He is simply saying, "Damn it, I don't want to run this useless fluff, but these silly women have taken up reading and writing and forced my hand."
2) Goodman has a very low opinion of his own female employees and readers. He wrote, "Only a third of our staff at the office is men..." and "...occasional static from some females about not having enough news for women." Logically, if his news crew was predominantly women and, at least in his mind's eye, women are only interested in reporting on "hot colors for throw pillows," then it would follow that CityView would offer a more than adequate supply of soft news that would appeal to soft-news-seeking female readers, right?
3) Goodman stereotypes his male readership, possibly in an attempt to remake them in his own image. He wrote, "There's something for all of us guys to learn in the book, too, if we can put down our TV remotes, wrenches and the Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition long enough to soak it in."
I've worked with enough older male journalists and editors to understand the whole hankering for days gone by -- newsrooms filled with male smoke, male obscenities and male flatulence. It was so much easier when the sexes didn't publicly mingle, male reporters covered male policymakers and community leaders, and "skirts" were only good for the occasional scandal. Back then, at least I'm told, reporters felt free to call each other "boobs" or "panty-waists" or even "pussies" for not getting out there and banging some heads together -- well, at least when they weren't sharing a cigar and beer at the country club with those who were overdue for public flogging.
I also get that it is much more convenient to point to 'chickification' instead of unraveling the news industry's woes of technological advancements, decreased readership, low ad revenues and ever-increasing expenditure costs.
What I get most of all -- and this is mostly due to the wonderful and educational time I've spent with older journalists both male and female -- is that leaders don't scapegoat. Leaders consider all options and, upon having made a thoughtful decision, don't screw it up with public blood- or testosterone-letting.
