In defense of the sanctimonious women's studies set || First feminist blog on the internet

HR Blog Has Arrived

Lauren

I’m sure you know that the Huffington Report blog is in action, and is already an enjoyable read.

But today, the Huffington Report has arrived. How do I know? Richard Bradley writes:

Where Are the Women?

No, this isn’t a plea for a date.

I was merely scrolling down the page reading people’s posts when I noticed a certain gender imbalance. (I just wrote a book about Larry Summers, so the issue’s on my mind.)

25 posts as of this writing. 22 men, 3 women.

What’s up with that? Anyone?

Oh, honey. I’m not dipping a toe into this one.

15 thoughts on HR Blog Has Arrived

  5. Now see, it’s her own fault for not putting me on her blogroll, ’cause I could answer that question. If I, you know, cared.

    Seriously though, I don’t mind Huffingblog, but I’m not sure it’s a blog yet.

  6. I can’t think of a better way to signal one’s complete ignorance of the blogosphere. Congratulations, Richard!

  7. Actually, I think it’s in his favor that he noticed the gender inequity on his own blog so early. It at least says some of the people writing on THB are mindful of this fact.

    Now they need to turn their eyes to their blogroll (and saying this will probably get me some crap). It’s sad.

  8. yes, pathetic

    Nearly as pathetic as huffington’s duplication of the front photo of king tut on the nytimes right now

    You know, the more the MSM types and power brokers adopt blogs, the more transparent and dubious their inner societies will become. Or so one hopes.

    I think it takes far more courage to do what Rosie O’Donnell is doing than these “group support” blogs. That is risk-taking. The huffingtonpost is not. Isn’t blogging really about getting to know one personality and their voice/passions/interests/styles/dislikes/quirks/etc? Huffington isn’t a blog — it’s a celebrity editorial page.

    One big yawn.

  9. As I do not appear on the Huffablogroll, I have no comment and no link for those assholes. 😉

    Seriously, I saw that item yesterday and thought “Here it comes …”

  12. So I’m probably asking for trouble posting this on here, but some of these posts are unfairly harsh. I’m pretty familiar with the blogosphere, partly because I have my own blog.

    And I certainly have my thoughts about the paucity of women on the Huffington Post, even though I didn’t say what they were.

    What I was trying to do in raising the question discussed above was to start a conversation about it on Arianna’s site. It’s lame that the site is so male-dominated (although pretty typical of the MSM). But I thought it’d be more effective to get people thinking, rather than hit them over the head with a rant.

    And by the way, I agree–it’s weird that you can’t post comments on that site, and I’ve told them so. Hopefully they’re going to change that.

    I also agree that the site has its problems, and a lot of the contributors are dull and pompous. I suspect they’ll either improve with time or just sort of drop off… In any case, the Huffington Post is about four days old. Give it some time before slagging it entirely….

  13. What I was trying to do in raising the question discussed above was to start a conversation about it on Arianna’s site. It’s lame that the site is so male-dominated (although pretty typical of the MSM). But I thought it’d be more effective to get people thinking, rather than hit them over the head with a rant.

    Richard, this is why you and I will get along.

  14. Richard,

    My comments were’t directed at you per se. As you note, it’s the concept of the website as a whole that is the problem. You asked a question at the end of your post, yet there were no comments enabled so that folks could directly answer. It does make it seem as if noone wants to hear the answer even if that was not your intent.

    Anyway, aren’t “real” blogs all about having the freedom to rant when circumstances necessitate? Following my earlier example, Rosie rants from time to time — which renders her all the more familiar and personable.

    Could it be that if you ranted too much, they might not invite you back?

    And tell Ariana that turning on the comments in the “News” section alone doesn’t address the problem.

    But, then again, I now see that you, too, can be unfairly harsh and dismissive.

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/theblog/archive/richard-bradley/no-ghostwriters-please.html

    Might there be a more congenial, helpful way to both take into consideration the valid comments/critique of the *woman* congressman and encourage her to write her own editorials, if that was in fact the case as you are presuming?

    And, along with the Katie Couric post, that’s now two women you have criticized in a single day. But who is counting?

  15. Dko,

    I think that, on the whole, I criticize men and women equally, and probably men more than women. My criticism tends to be directed at people who have power, which, in this case, applies to congresswoman Slaughter and to Katie Couric.

    I agree with you that “real” blogs allow people to vent when they feel the need. I don’t know how Arianna would feel if I really vented…for all I know, she might like it. Arianna’s a very secure person, and she doesn’t shy away from controversy.

    But look, I agree with the basic criticism of the Huffington Post that people seem to be expressing: It’s not really a blog right now, it’s just a kind of opportunity for celebrities of various sorts (and a few little-known writers like me) to bloviate. Frankly, it’s boring. I wonder if anyone even reads what the other posters write before going on about whatever they think is important.

    But I’ve put my two cents in with the powers-that-be there about allowing comments, and I’m hopeful that some of the people who don’t really have a feel for posting will get better at it before too long.

    One of the things I like about Arianna Huffington is that she’s not afraid to put herself out there and take a chance, and so I want this thing to succeed, even if there are parts of it that aren’t working right now.

    And for what it’s worth, I think the gender inequity on the Huffington Post is a glaring and growing embarrassment. That doesn’t mean I won’t disagree with some of the things women contributors post. But it does mean I think it’d be a much more diverse and interesting place if it was balanced between male and female.

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