Perpetual Lack of Substance
So I’m taking a break from my normal hard-hitting news routine to kind of vent my frustration with news resources. In this blog, my focus is on women’s interests and issues. While I think that leaves room for a pretty broad range of information, I am still finding it difficult to find stories that matter. Maybe I am picking or judgmental but I really want to focus on all aspects of female life. What I find, however, is that often the articles focus on women in relation to men in society. It always seems to be a compare and contrast of gender. I think many of the articles I have posted on here are great examples, such as articles about occupations, business and gender roles in society. Part of me wonders if we could use this type of information to keep women informed and in the know as opposed to just showing them what they already know about their roles in society.
My other beef is with the lack of substance. I do some other types of freelance writing and actually submitted one of my published articles as part of my application here. One of the articles I wrote and submitted is about the lack of substance in today’s female society. This is not to say that there aren’t women today with intelligence and insight to offer; it is that American society and often the world-at-large chooses not to focus on those things. Many womens sites, magazines and media outlets focus on fashion and beauty rather than education and independent thought. As I sat down today to write my post, I found myself on the hunt for useful, informative information that relates to women’s interests and issues. More and more often though, I leave disappointed. I don’t want to discuss Lindsey Lohan and Paris Hilton. I don’t want to give women tips on hair color. And I don’t want to talk about listen to women whine about dating. These things are temporary and often superficial. Unfortunately, this is what many women find as resources for life.
Now, this isn’t to say that I haven’t found some great resources for news and information. Women’s Media Center, Women’s eNews, the New York Times and some of the sites you see listed under my links have been very helpful. Some of the stories overlap and I do think there is a need to increase the number of resources. I think overall my point is that I want to see women’s view of society change so that society’s view of women will change. I think progress should be the major goal in the end.
women, news, resources, research, society, gender, news, information
