Recent Directions for the Study of Women's History in American

Journalism Studies, Volume 2, Number 2, 2001, pp. 207–220

Recent Directions for the Study of Women’s History in American Journalism

MAURINE BEASLEY University of Maryland, USA

ABSTRACT This article reviews recent work that deals with the experience of women in American journalism. It concludes that this work points in the direction of a new synthesis telling a more comprehensive story of women and journalism as an alternative to the present narrative that details women’s efforts to succeed professionally by conforming to a male model of journalistic performance. To fully arrive at this synthesis, the article contends, a new denition of journalism itself is needed—one broad enough to encompass women like Eleanor Roosevelt, who used journalism for political and personal ends not related to the professional norm of objectivity. In calling for a rede nition of journalism to include women’s perspectives, the article advocates more use of family-oriented social history and biography as well as more study of women’s networking in journalism and women’s personal experience recorded in oral histories.

KEY WORDS: Journalism, Journalism History, Women in Journalism, Eleanor Roosevelt, De nition of Journalism, Professionalism in Journalism

Women and De nitions of Eleanor Roosevelt’s journalistic pur- Journalism suits included her newspaper column, which was a diary of her daily activities When Eleanor Roosevelt died in 1962, which she wrote from 1936 until the she was praised throughout the world year she died, hundreds of magazine as a path-breaking First Lady of the articles and countless sponsored United States, whose diplomatic skills broadcasts that dealt with public affairs at the United Nations had led to pass- (Beasley, 1987). Obviously, her career age of the Universal Declaration of Hu- traded on her name and position as man Rights. Little consideration was rst the wife and then the widow of given to her as a journalist, yet that Franklin D. Roosevelt, the only Presi- was the way she de ned herself. Her dent of the United States elected four last income tax return gave her occu- times. Nevertheless, Eleanor Roo- pation as “author, lecturer and pro- sevelt sought to establish herself as a fessional journalist” (Roosevelt bona de professional journalist. In ad- records, 1961). At the time of her death dition to the National Federation of the contents of her wallet included Press Women, she was a member of membership cards for the Newspaper the New York Newspaper Women’s Guild, a labor union for newspaper em- Club and the Women’s National Press ployees, and the National Federation of Club and American Newspaper Press Women (Jackdaw, 1997). women’s Club in Washington. Press

ISSN 1461-670X print/ISSN 1469-9699 online/01/020207-14 Ó 2001 Taylor & Francis Ltd DOI: 10.1080/14616700120042088 208 MAURINE BEASLEY club membership was important to her tional de nitions and evaluations of self-conception as a career woman be- professional journalists in the United cause it helped give her journalistic States. They show that women credentials, just as did her membership journalists should be evaluated from a in the Newspaper Guild, the labor historical perspective using a broader union for editorial employees. set of criteria than applied to men, Her journalistic success stemmed due to the complexities of women’s so- from her celebrity status and her own cial roles. involvement in political activity during To do this, however, a wider three important historical periods—the de nition of journalism itself is needed Great Depression in the United States, than the traditional one that involves World War II and the Cold War. Her reporting and commenting on con icts career did not involve skill in journalistic and controversies mainly of interest to techniques that call for detached obser- a male-run world. A broader de nition, vation. Nevertheless, this article con- more appropriate to women’s experi- tends Eleanor Roosevelt should be ence, has to include the presentation of considered a professional journalist— informative material that has wide the way she saw herself. It presents popular appeal. her as a notable example of a woman who employed a different model of journalism than that de ned by men Women’s Experience in who have dominated the eld in the Journalism United States. In some respects Roosevelt was not unique among women in journalism in New Research Approaches the United States. Since the nineteenth century a few women have achieved Consideration of Eleanor Roosevelt as celebrity status in journalism by activity a journalist serves as an introduction to that blurs the line between reporting this article because it provides a brief and entertaining focused on their own case study of three relatively new ap- personalities. One of the rst was proaches to the study of women and “Nellie Bly” (Elizabeth Cochran), the journalism which will be addressed. celebrated “stunt girl” reporter who They are: biographical works that in- dashed around the world for Joseph volve women’s family relationships; in- Pulitzer’s New York World in 1889 stitutional histories of women’s (Kroeger, 1994; Kilmer 1999). On the journalistic associations; and social his- contemporary scene Oprah Winfrey tories that set the voices of women stands out. Although she began her journalists and their self-de nitions career as a newspaper reporter, she against the context of their times. has attained fame as the rst African- These three approaches cover fam- American woman to host a television ily-oriented studies that take in the per- talk show—which has made her one of sonal as well as the professional, the wealthiest women in the United inquiry into journalistic networking States. Her picture hangs in the Free- along gender lines, and narratives that dom Forum Newseum in Arlington, Vir- emphasize the emergence of women’s ginia as a “newsperson” alongside voices. In short, they call for looking at pictures of Bernard Shaw, CNN net- women in journalism through a wider work anchor, and Randy Shilts, a San lens than previously has been used. Francisco reporter who gained recogni- They also bring into question convention for coverage of AIDS. Should it be WOMEN’S HISTORY IN AMERICAN JOURNALISM 209 there? Should Winfrey be considered a begins to assess the role of women. journalist on the grounds that her pro- This article takes note of recent efforts gram provides some news within the to broaden biographical perspectives, context of entertainment? examine women’s own organizations What about gossip columnists like within journalism and study women’s Louella Parson, who could make or participation within journalism from the break stars during Hollywood’s golden standpoint of how they have endeav- era of the 1930s and 1940s? Advice ored to transform as well as work within columnists like Elizabeth Gilmore existing social structures. In addition, (“Dorothy Dix” in the early twentieth the article points to relatively untapped century), as well as the contemporary sources for additional research: rst, Esther Pauline Lederer, (“Ann Lan- archival resources pertaining to the ders”), and her twin sister, Pauline Es- ways in which women journalists have ther Phillips (“Dear Abby”), who draw de ned themselves though their volun- readers to journalism with popular in- tary associations; second, oral histories formation on personal relationships? that record the attitudes and personal Crusaders like suffragists Elizabeth experiences of women journalists. Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony Use of these resources places the and birth-control advocate Margaret study of women within a rich mix of Sanger, who published newspapers to social and cultural concerns that make advocate social and political change? the story of women journalists a subset And wives who worked with their hus- of American mass communications his- bands on family-owned newspapers? tory. Its core remains, however, based Such women are rarely given more on the ways women have reached the than a super cial mention, if that, in public through the employment of American journalism history because journalistic forms. These are the rituals, they are not seen as legitimate practi- like interviewing and questions and an- tioners. Do they deserve more? swers, that can be geared to advocacy, The answer must be “yes” if we want advice and/or entertainment as well as to understand the historical constraints, the events, con icts and public contro- limitations and opportunities available versies that typically make up the news to women in journalism. Widening our agenda. concept of journalism allows us to take While it is certainly true that men as into account more fully the way women well as women have been involved in have participated in all areas of the the production of soft content, there eld, whether oriented to the presen- remains more need to study women tation of “hard” (front-page) or “soft” journalists than men journalists in this (feature) news. It lets us go beyond context. Soft news traditionally has news per se to the involvement of been the area conducive to success for women in allied activities like public women, although it has been given relations which include an understand- only limited attention by journalism his- ing of and participation in the journal- torians, who have seen it as being of istic process. less consequence than male-dominated hard news. Therefore, the achievements of women have tended The Recent Movement in US to be marginalized. Journalism History As an example of the sharp differences in the careers of men and Journalism history in the United States women in journalism, consider the dis- is already moving in this direction as it play of signi cant “newspeople” from 210 MAURINE BEASLEY the Middle Ages to the present at the women in history in general, is far more Freedom Forum Newseum. Including complicated than the simple addition of Winfrey, some 150 individuals and women “to the pictures we already three husband/wife teams are honored. have of the past”, in the words of fem- Of these, 33 individuals are women, inist historian Linda Gordon (Gordon, but only 11 are acclaimed for accom- n.d., p. 1). While the most common ap- plishments related to expertise in tra- proach is the biographical, this repre- ditional hard news: Ida Tarbell, sents a complex task that can be magazine muckraker; Lorena Hickok, pursued in various stages of conceptu- Associated Press reporter before be- alization. These range from the simple coming a media advisor to Eleanor presentation of factual information to Roosevelt; Mary Marvin Breckinridge, complex studies of motivation and cul- CBS broadcaster from Europe at the tural signi cance. start of World War II; Marguerite Hig- Mitchell has called on historians of gins, winner of a Pulitzer Prize for Ko- women journalists to consider biogra- rean War coverage; Pauline Frederick, phy in terms of the four-stage concep- pioneer woman network television cor- tualization of women’s history by Gerda respondent; Barbara Walters, rst reg- Lerner—compensatory, contribution, ular television network anchorwoman; transition, and synthesis (Mitchell, Helen Thomas, veteran White House 1990a). According to Lerner (1979), the correspondent for United Press Inter- compensatory stage represented the national, and Veronica Guerin, an Irish identi cation of women previously omit- reporter murdered while investigating ted from standard historical accounts. organized crime. Moving beyond it, Lerner described the Six others are recognized as publish- contribution stage as the evaluation of ers (three of whom, including Katharine women’s achievements in a male-dom- Graham of the Washington Post, rep- inated world, the transition stage as the resent newspaper families) and one as reworking of various historical catego- an editor of a woman’s magazine— rizations from women’s perspectives, Sarah Josepha Hale of Godey’s Lady’s and the synthesis stage as the inte- Book. The remainder are acclaimed as gration of the history of men and crusaders, “stunt girls”, columnists, women’s experience. In compiling a photographers, and broadcasters who bibliography of 76 books and articles do not t the “hard news” criteria. None on women journalists, Mitchell listed 45 is honored for being the editor of a in the compensatory category with 26 metropolitan newspaper. By contrast in the contribution category and ve in some 20 of the men selected are the transitional (Mitchell, 1990b). She founders and/or editors of major placed no works in the synthesis cate- journalistic institutions (News History gory. Gazette, 1997). This is just one illus- Biographies of individual women tration of the fact that the careers of journalists dominated the compensa- women in journalism history have dif- tory category, although they also were fered substantially from those of men. found in the contribution and transitional categories. Mitchell, however, contended there is a need for more, Biography and Women rather than fewer, biographies of Journalists women journalists. She argued that additional studies are needed to uncover The historical study of women in Amer- valuable archival sources, correct or ican journalism, like the study of reinterpret previous scholarship and re- WOMEN’S HISTORY IN AMERICAN JOURNALISM 211 cord the details that will allow, in the stream news media to rework themes words of another scholar, “a larger so- such as the penny press, sensational- ciocultural interpretation” eventually ism, muckraking, notable editors, and leading to a new synthesis (Smith, the growth of in uential news organiza- 1982, cited in Mitchell, 1990a, p. 31). tions (Carey, 1974). Fueled by the The need for synthesis also was women’s movement, however, articles pointed out in an article posing the and books on the history of women question of whether women in journal- proliferated in the late twentieth cen- ism have been pictured by historians tury, offering an array of approaches as contributors to a male-dominated that may be applied to the history of eld or as independent voices. The au- women in American journalism (Henry, thor concluded no de nite answer 1989). To date, however, women, like could be given because many works on minorities, have been studied mainly women journalists have utilized a male from the standpoint of chronicling the perspective of journalism, although a dif culties they have overcome in order start had been made in examining the to succeed in a male-oriented eld “tensions and ambiguities between (Beasley and Gibbons, 1993; Bennion, women’s experiences and journalism 1990; Marzolf, 1977; Mills, 1988; itself” (Beasley, 1990, p. 54). An exam- Robertson, 1992; Sanders and Rock, ple cited was a biographical article on 1988; Steiner, 1997b; van Zoonen, Ida Tarbell which examined her per- 1998). sonal con ict between journalism and As a result, historians have evalu- marriage (Stinson, 1977). More re- ated women as journalists chie y in cently, Steiner has described the way terms of their ability to adhere to an biography, particularly autobiography, ideal of objectivity in newsgathering offers valuable insights into how and presentation which has purported women have “gendered” themselves, to give a rational, truthful picture of the using the term “women journalists” in world. The ideal, formulated by male recognition of the fact that they have editors and publishers in the nineteenth been set apart from male colleagues century, t well in an industrial society and excluded from being taken seri- that expressed faith in science and ously (Steiner, 1997a, pp. 2–12; 1998, used news as a commercial com- pp. 145–59)). modity. Objectivity soon became the overriding idea of the professional journalist (Schudson, 1978; Mindich, More Attention Given to Women 1998; Allen, 1999). Since editors thought women were Biographical study of women journal- too emotional to handle news that met ists over the last quarter-century, even the criteria of objectivity, those seeking if con ned mainly to the compensatory journalistic careers had to ght to prove and contribution stages, has repre- themselves able to meet male stan- sented a great improvement over ear- dards. Writing the rst modern history lier decades when women were of women journalists in the United virtually ignored in US journalism his- States, Marzolf called journalistic tory. For most of the twentieth century, “professionalism” the code by which American journalism history was the women have won “respect and admir- narrow preserve of relatively few schol- ation” (Marzolf, 1977, p. vii). In a similar ars, mainly white males. These schol- vein, biographical studies, which t into ars barely mentioned women as they the compensatory and contribution cat- used an institutional base of main- egories, frequently have presented the 212 MAURINE BEASLEY accomplishments of women journalists including three written by women, did in terms of their abilities to play roles not have women as their subjects similar to those of male journalists (Journalism History, 1997–98, p. 180). (Belford, 1986; Goldberg, 1987; May, In volume 24 there also were 12 arti- 1983; Schilpp and Murphy, 1983). cles (Journalism History, 1998–99, p. 178), but only two, both of which t in the contribution category, appeared on Enlargement of Biographical women’s history (Smethers and Jolliffe, Studies 1998–99; Streitmatter, 1998). Authors of all 12 articles were male except for In the past decade biographical studies one co-author, Jolliffe. These examples of women journalists have been en- show that male, as well as female, larged. Some work looks speci cally at historians view the history of women minority women journalists who have journalists as important. Yet, they also fought for their race (Streitmatter, 1994; illustrate the need for more scholarship Gorham, 1993, Rhodes, 1998). Other integrating women with men in US jour- studies have begun to inquire into the nalism history. nuances of husband–wife relationships In writing the history of American in mass communication enterprises. women journalists, a determined move Among them are articles on Doris forward into stages three and four in Fleishman, a public relations pioneer, terms of Lerner’s conceptualization who was the wife of Edward L. Bernays changes the focus from a narrow con- (Henry, 1997, 1999) (see the “Classic centration on women’s struggle for pro- Books Revisited” feature in this issue of fessional recognition. Instead, it Journalism Studies). The involvement broadens the study of women to cover of Elma “Pem” Gardner Farnsworth in a wide range of their journalistic activi- the development of television by her ties, including the preparation of fea- husband, Philo, also has been re- ture, opinion, or entertainment content searched (Godfrey and Pratte, 1994). in both mainstream and alternative me- Scholars may assume that the ex- dia. This approach provides the latitude pansion of historical study of women to look at women advocates as well as journalists is due to a growing number to examine the careers of women who of women working in the area of jour- participated in family enterprises. It nalism history in the United States, but turns journalism history, as Lauren this is not totally the case. While Kessler has put it, into the “story of a women have done path-breaking work, vital human process” which involves they have not con ned themselves to the communication of ideas by and their own gender. For example, in vol- about women, as well as men, through ume 23 of Journalism History (1997– the mass media (Kessler, 1990, pp. 4– 98) there were a total of 12 articles, ve 5). It further expands journalism history written by men and seven written by into allied elds—advertising, public re- women (Journalism History, 1997–98, lations and broadcasting history—and p. 180). Of these, four, which can be look at the interaction between these considered at the level three stage, areas. dealt with women’s history: the Steiner In addition, it looks at issues (such article previously referred to ac- as reproduction) rarely addressed in companied by an annotated bibli- mainstream media because of con- ography, the Henry article, and one straints that have made women’s con- other discussed in the next section cerns secondary to male-oriented (Burt, 1997). The remaining articles, topics. It also asks to what degree WOMEN’S HISTORY IN AMERICAN JOURNALISM 213 women have differed in their own per- pact” (Covert, 1981, pp. 2–6). Crucial spectives as to what journalism should elements here are broader de nitions be. It allies journalism history more of who can and cannot rightfully be closely with social history, an area of called a journalist. study crucial for understanding women’s experience, rather than with business histories of media empires. Institutional History of Women Individual biographical studies then be- Journalists come what feminist historians have called for—“sympathetic analyses Attempts to deal with de nitions of which attempt to integrate personal women journalists began in the nine- motivational factors and the external teenth century, when American women social environment” (Gordon et al., rst sought to be included in the 1976, p. 83). speci c occupation called “journalist”. Such an approach allows historians Writing was one of the few options of women journalists to situate rela- available to women in an era when tively narrow slices of the past—bio- almost all other professional avenues graphical accounts of women who have were closed (Gordon et al., 1976). Re- received various awards, for in- ferred to as “literary ladies”, US women stance—in relation to both how women writers, particularly in the North and perceived themselves and how they West, attained some success during were perceived by the larger society in the Victorian period, when rising stan- terms of the recognition given their ac- dards of living and literacy created a complishments. As the American His- demand for material to serve a female torical Association has expressed it, audience. A few obtained jobs on historians must “weigh the evidence at newspapers that hired them to write hand, and interpret information in ac- emotional “sob sister” news articles, cordance with a historical framework perform “stunts” to increase circulation, established by documentary, oral, and and prepare copy for society and visual testimony from the forebears women’s pages that were designed to who bequeathed such knowledge and draw readers to department store ad- deemed it worthy of remembrance” vertising (Mott, 1963). Other women (Hanley, 1996, pp. 1, 6). worked on periodicals aimed at a fe- In my view we need to ask why only male audience. Some periodicals a relatively few women journalists re- sought to advance causes like temper- main in the American collective histori- ance or suffrage, while others stressed cal memory, while many others have fashion and domestic pursuits. been forgotten. Asking this question To understand the context in which broadens our insight into the way so- some “literary ladies” came to de ne ciety has valued the nature and prac- themselves as professional journalists, tice of journalism as well as the work of we need to look at the institutional his- women in various historical periods. tory of American women journalists. In Journalism history conceptualized in pursuit of common interests women this fashion leads to an approach pro- writers banded together in press orga- posed by Catherine Covert, who called nizations before 1900. Women’s press for “new organizing values suggested associations have been identi ed in 17 by the experience of women”, which states by 1900, with a total of some include “failure and despair as well as 700 members (Burt, 1997). These success and progress, bonding and clubs grew out of the cooperative spirit community as well as con ict and im- of the general women’s club move- 214 MAURINE BEASLEY ment, which in turn was promoted on term “literary lady” one of derision by the woman’s pages of newspapers. 1900 (Burt, 1997, p. 81). As clubs ar- One study showed newspapers were gued over quali cations for admission, so attuned to white, middle-class club- rival organizations were set up. In women, many of whom fell in the Michigan, for instance, differences of “literary lady” category, that editors will- opinion over membership criteria be- ingly let them produce special came so acute that two competing “women’s editions” in the 1890s to groups were established within two raise money for charitable causes (Col- years. bert, 1996, pp. 91–99). This work, like In 1890 the Michigan Woman’s that of McGlashan, has suggested that Press Association was founded with 27 it would be fruitful to look intently at the charter members, many of whom were relationship between women’s organi- involved in family businesses. Mrs M. zations and women’s pages, which E. C. Bates of the Grand Traverse Her- served as a means for women to com- ald, who arranged the meeting, discov- municate within the con nes of a male- ered potential members all over the dominated society (McGlashan, 1981). state: “Earnest, capable women, edit- Examination of women’s pages and so- ing departments, doing reportorial cial class in the 1950s has been pro- work, compiling news or helping their vided in a case study of the husbands in all around newspaper Washington Post (Yang, 1993). Such work” (Weddon, 1996, p. 114). Two studies, examples of stage three work, years later came the Michigan call for more research into the social Woman’s Press Club, described as class connections of women journalists “necessarily small, being con ned in general. strictly to active newspaper workers of Women’s press clubs provided im- sex comparatively new in journalism” portant outlets for women journalists, (Weddon, 1996, p. 127). Taking issue who were excluded from male-run with the Press Association’s willing- journalistic organizations until the ness to extend membership to any 1970s. As a group the women’s clubs published women writers who lived in led members to see themselves as a Michigan, the new group was limited to distinct category within journalism, with women whose work appeared in Michi- their own needs and problems. To cite gan newspapers. one example, the Woman’s Press Club of New York, a group founded in 1889, was particularly interested in mentoring Club Archives as Invaluable young women writers. In common with Sources of Information other early clubs, this group set broad entrance criteria and reached out to Over the years scores of women’s women active in both journalism and journalistic organizations have arisen in other literary occupations (Gottlieb, the United States, frequently to die in 1995). struggles over their mission as times Schisms in the American club move- changed, although some have re- ment, however, soon developed with mained in existence for decades. Little disputes arising over membership cri- systematic study has been made of teria. Some press groups stressed these groups from the perspective of “professionalism” (as de ned by institutional history, yet their archives women doing full-time journalistic work represent invaluable sources of infor- similar to that performed by men) and mation. Membership lists point out the devalued part-time writers, making the relationship between women in journal- WOMEN’S HISTORY IN AMERICAN JOURNALISM 215 ism and allied occupations like public nized to allow women who had covered relations. They also allow for collective the suffrage campaign together to pre- biographical pro les of club members. serve their professional association af- By showing to what degree the clubs ter women gained voting rights. Early were closed to minority women, they members, in addition to Roosevelt, in- document issues of class and race cluded the most prominent women within the ranks of women journalists, journalists in New York like Ann O’Hare subjects that need more investigation. McCormick of the New York Times, the For instance, the Women’s National rst woman to win a Pulitzer Prize for Press Club (WNPC), founded in Wash- journalistic attainment, and Helen ington, DC in 1919, brought together Rogers Reid, publisher of the New women journalists and publicists, who York Herald Tribune. were barred by their sex from membership in the prestigious National Press Club. To keep its news orientation it Important Source Material limited the participation of publicists (none could be elected president) and Another important source for study of took in twice as many journalists as women’s journalistic organizations is publicists (Beasley, 1988). Its member- the National Women and Media Collec- ship requirements were so stringent tion at the University of Missouri— that a minority of nine objected to Columbia. Holdings include the Eleanor Roosevelt becoming a mem- archives of the National Federation of ber on grounds that she did not earn Press Women, Women in Communica- her livelihood from journalism (Beasley, tions (founded in 1909 as a journalism 1987). In 1970 the organization sorority, Theta Sigma Phi), and the changed its name to the Washington Women’s Institute for Freedom of the Press Club and voted to take in men Press (WIFP), a feminist thinktank in just before the National Press Club Washington, DC interested in public nally agreed to admit women. policy involving the media. The WIFP Fortunately for the historian, the collection holds particular interest, WNPC maintained voluminous records, since it contains papers of Donna Al- now preserved in the archives of the len, institute founder and president who National Press Club. They could be died in 1999, a leading advocate of used to help trace the unwritten story of national and international networks interaction among club members, who among women involved in both main- represented the elite of both the Wash- stream and alternative publications (Al- ington woman’s press and publicity len, 1988; Beasley, 1992). corps, and women in politics, who fre- Among various local repositories that quently spoke to the club. The records hold rarely used archival material are also can be used to study the group’s the following: Indiana Historical So- history of racial exclusion: it did not ciety, Indianapolis, records of the take in an African-American member Woman’s Press Club of Indiana; Uni- until the mid-1950s when it accepted versity of Michigan, Ann Arbor, period- Alice A. Dunnigan of the Associated ical le of the Michigan Women’s Press Negro Press (Dunnigan, n.d.). Association; State Historical Society of Other archival material is held at the North Dakota, archives of North Dakota headquarters of the New York Newspa- Press Women; Ohioana Library, per Women’s Club, a group started in Cincinnati, archives of Woman’s Press 1922 which continues today. Like the Club, Cincinnati; University of Oregon WNPC, the New York club was orga- Library, Eugene, papers of the State 216 MAURINE BEASLEY

Woman’s Press Club (Portland); His- 1994). She said she did not report it to torical Society of Western Pennsylva- her superiors at the newspaper be- nia, Pittsburgh, papers of the Women’s cause sexual harassment was such a Press Club of Pittsburgh. common occurrence that women “just As the competing organizations in sort of pretended it hadn’t happened, in Michigan illustrated, the story of those days” (Shanahan, 1994, p. 239). women in journalism involves family For instance, Senator John Sparkman, history to a considerable extent, since chairman of the Senate Banking Com- newspapers traditionally have been mittee, who was one of the “worst ones family-owned enterprises. Little histori- [members of Congress]” in terms of cal work has been done, however, from making “crude lunges”, once directed the standpoint of family studies. A nota- her to his “hideaway of ce” to get a ble exception is Henry’s study of the copy of an important committee report role of Eliza A. Otis, wife of Harrison (p. 239). Gray Otis, in building the Los Angeles “He actually tore a button off my Times (Henry, 1987). The archives of blouse, trying to get at me,” Shanahan the African-American newspapers, for continued. “And I remember saying to example, located at Bowie State Uni- him, ‘You do one thing more and I will versity, Bowie, Maryland afford an op- le charges of attempted rape, and I’m portunity to study the Murphy family not kidding.’ And he said, ‘Oh, don’t be which has owned the newspaper since like that,’ and so forth. And I pulled 1892. To date no history has been writ- myself together as best I could—and ten of the men and women who have remembered to pick up the report—and run that newspaper. walked out” (Shanahan, 1994, p. 239). Subsequently, she sought news from Sparkman “only when I was desperate Oral Histories of Women to get some information … I never went Journalists to that hideaway of ce again … [sexual harassment] was just a hazard of life” Oral history represents another (p. 239). archival treasure for the historian interested in American women journalists. By far the most important collection is Sexual Harassment Not Mentioned the “Women in Journalism” project of the Washington Press Club Foun- No mention of sexual harassment ever dation, most of which now is available appeared in articles written by Shana- on the internet. It consists of some 60 han for the New York Times. The sub- interviews with women journalists ject is an example of the kind of topic deemed to have made signi cant con- that journalists left off the public tributions to society since the 1920s. agenda until recently. But it is vital to Through these interviews, which have understanding the complex relationship been relatively little used by journalism between journalists and news sources historians, the life experience of and needs to be studied as part of the women journalists comes alive. history of women journalists. Oral his- To cite a particularly compelling ex- tory is one way of approaching sub- ample, Eileen Shanahan, who covered jects, like sexual harassment, that economics for the New York Times in women may not be willing to discuss Washington from 1966 to 1977, spoke until years after speci c events have frankly, in her interview, about sexual occurred. harassment on Capitol Hill (Shanahan, Yet oral history is not a panacea for WOMEN’S HISTORY IN AMERICAN JOURNALISM 217 immediate arrival at an insightful narra- tunities for promotion by becoming a tive of the history of journalists. Women plaintiff in a class action suit by women telling their own stories may or may not at the New York Times. She described demonstrate the ability to analyze their herself as “always a feminist” in terms own experiences. Neither women’s au- of desire to do what she wanted to do, tobiographies or oral histories necess- but said she never had a close woman arily reveal that their subjects are friend during most of her career, which themselves able to cast much light on indicates she was not part of a feminist differences in social expectations for network (Shanahan, 1994, pp. 56–58). men and women, described by femi- Findings of this type may be some- nists as “gender-driven dualisms”, what surprising to interviewers, but which affected their careers (Lumsden, they are important in understanding the 1995, p. 914). Even when ample proof relationship of women to a male-domi- exists that women have occupied a nated occupation. Much more study of subordinate status to men, women be- oral history transcripts is needed to de- ing interviewed may not re ect on their termine whether the presence of a cer- lives from that perspective or identify tain number of women within a with feminist goals. This may be partic- journalistic organization leads to a ularly true in the case of older women. group push for equality or whether Interviews with two generations of women continue to view themselves as women journalists, those who reported individual achievers. Oral history offers prior to 1942 and those who reported a promising way to document the work- chie y from 1942 to 1964, bore out this ing conditions of women journalists for premise. Interviews from the earlier pe- much of the twentieth century and to riod were of Marie Anderson, women’s examine the effects of organized social page editor of the Miami Herald, and movement on women within news or- Katherine Beebe Pinkham Harris, an ganizations. Payne, for instance, al- Associated Press correspondent; from though she barely identi ed herself the latter period were interviews with with feminism, said she was an advo- Shanahan and Ethel Payne, a corre- cate for the civil rights movement: “I felt spondent for the Chicago Defender. I was woven into the drama that was The study showed that women of the going on” (Payne, 1987, p. 149). earlier period minimized discrimination (Zandberg, 1999). Although this was not true of women of the later period, Conclusions who led law suits and fought for equality, representatives of both To achieve a new synthesis that tells groups saw themselves as “lone the comprehensive story of American achievers” who succeeded on their women journalists requires a new own without seeking support from fe- de nition of journalism in order to es- male colleagues (Zandberg, 1999, tablish categories for including and ex- p. 3). cluding individuals. All women who Harris, for example, forced by the have made use of journalistic tech- Associated Press to retire at the age of niques—gathering new information of 55 although men were not required to current value and presenting it in vari- leave until they were 65, did not make ous popular formats—have a claim to an issue of her departure, recalling “I be studied as journalists, regardless of was not particularly feminist” (Harris, whether their primary mission has been 1989, p. 97). Shanahan, by contrast, to advocate, report, comment or enter- fought discrimination in her own oppor- tain. This is an ideal time to undertake 218 MAURINE BEASLEY a rede nition as sweeping technologi- activities of women in journalism de- cal change calls into question the con- feats any attempt to write a complete tinuation of the traditional news media. account of their history. It is only by The frequency with which women using an interdisciplinary approach, have moved from one role to another— drawing from elds like women’s his- from helpmate to editor to publisher to tory, gender studies and family studies, advocate, for instance—shows the that we can better understand women’s dif culty in treating women as pro- historical presence in the entire eld of fessional journalists who adhered to a journalism. Recent scholarship has male model of detached observation of called into question the concept of public affairs. Consider the work of Al- journalistic objectivity as a masculine ice B. Gossage, the rst person to be discourse that delimits women’s voices inducted into the South Dakota News- (Allen, 1998). Some feminist re- paper Hall of Fame (Karolevitz, 1982). searchers have de ned the subjective While Gossage was recognized for her as associated with a feminine idea of varied career, other women who connections between individuals in op- merged various forms of journalism position to the objective, de ned as have not been. A typesetter before her impartial, detached observation ori- marriage to Joe B. Gossage in 1882, ented toward competitive male experi- Alice Gossage served as the driving ence (Kitch, 1999). force behind her husband’s main- American journalism history now is stream newspaper, the Daily Rapid moving in the direction of broader, City Journal, for more than 30 years more subjective conceptualization in bi- because of his ill health. At the same ography, its area of traditional strength. time she was an advocate. Involved in Fortunately, archival materials allow reform efforts, she edited the state more movement in two other directions newspaper for the Women’s Christian also—study of American women’s Temperance Union and worked for suf- journalistic institutions as well as frage. women’s personal experience. Examin- Her career, like that of many other ation of the contributions women have women, including Eleanor Roosevelt, made on their own terms will allow for demonstrates the way that women a new synthesis in journalism history have straddled the line between jour- which incorporates women by setting nalism as a personal forum that both their activities within their social and af rms the status quo and pushes for cultural context. Of course, not every various degrees of social change. Of work on women in journalism can or course, men also have been both jour- should be a sweeping, path-breaking nalists and advocates, but the male endeavor, but each article can be part model of journalistic accomplishment of a meaningful new overall synthesis. has tended to give the greatest recog- An expanded concept of journalism nition to builders of giant journalistic permits scholarship to move beyond institutions, technological innovators the study of men, who have con- and tough reporters of momentous structed a fairly rigid structure of news events, like wars. These are areas in formulas and presentation, to en- which women historically have not par- compass the experience of women, ticipated to a large extent. who long have had a more expanded Imposition of male models on the view of public communication. WOMEN’S HISTORY IN AMERICAN JOURNALISM 219 References

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