I had some trouble picking something to write about for this blog. So I've been scouring the net to find something to talk about...and I've sucked at it. So as the semester winds down, I've hit the bottom of the barrel and decided to discuss the Huffington Post women's site. I like the Huffington Post, I read it now and then when I get directed to it by Reddit. I assumed when I found out that they had a women's section, there'd be a ton of scathing attacks on the abuse and stereotyping of women, completely ripe for a media moment on this blog. I could go on and on about how messed up "this" and "that" was, and basically riff (rip off) on whatever the journalist had written. Instead it was a Cosmo clone. It's like picking up a issue of The Nation and leafing through it to find articles about low cal cupcakes and blow-job tips. Barring a couple of articles, here's a run down of the "top" stories.
Huffington Post: Women
So, I'm wondering if the class is as disappointed as I am. Doesn't this make you cringe just a bit? I expected more. Also I'd like to know what classifies as a "women's" site these days. Is it diet tips or is it news and information that relates to women. As a man I'd like something more from a news site directed to my gender. Videos of large explosions and fart jokes are great, but that's a whole different kind of website.
Don't worry, you're not the only one who's disappointed. Although, I'm not that surprised. I know the Huffington Post is a pretty reputable name, but it seems that this kind of stuff sells. (I'm not hating on those buying/reading these).
ReplyDelete^ I have the same sentiment - disappointed but not surprised. It's about generating views rather than putting out something substantive that challenges the status quo, or even offers a different perspective. It's a tabloid, designed to get people to click on links instead of to have them consider thoughtful pieces.
ReplyDeleteBut to be fair to the Huffington Post and try to play devil's advocate, the publication never professes its women's site to be dedicated to feminist or women's rights issues per se, i.e. the fact that it's titled 'HPost Women' doesn't mean that it's going to tackle inequality and representation issues. It could be perceived as more of a site solely geared to the female demographic - meaning it runs pieces that all women, in theory, want to read, whether that is a female representation critique or a fluff sex article (although it definitely seems to tilt towards the latter).
While I would be one of the women that the Huffington Post would "target" as I would probably read all of these articles, I am also interested in other issues and I find this pretty surprising. I read the Huffington Post on a daily basis, and I never noticed this before. Maybe a letter to the editor is in order, here? On behalf of all women, I think that most of us would agree that the Huffington Post needs to expand it's titles and subjects a little more.
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