In what might have been the opening volley in the attack on affirmative action, ABC News aired a prime-time documentary hosted by John Stossel, "Boys and Girls Are Different: Men, Women and the Sex Difference."
The show emphasized differences between females and males, thus justifying discriminatory occupational patterns. Stossel's "proof" that women and men are different included anecdotes from parents about how their sons like to fight and their daughters like to play with dolls, as well as "experts" who claimed men are better at tasks requiring special and math skills, while women are better at remembering details and verbal skills.
The hour-long documentary treated the feminist movement as a relic of yesteryear, using footage of marches from the 1970's. Gloria Steinem, Bella Abzug and Gloria Allred were all interviewed for the program but their short sound-bites were manipulated to portray them as rigid and doctrinaire, not as experts.
In contrast, Stossel treated Kate O'Burn, a policy analyst from the rightwing Heritage Foundation, as an expert on women in combat. O'Burn's "expert" comments included, "combat is a manly pursuit." Stossel suggested that certain professions are better for men, such as architecture, firefighting, and military combat, whereas women would be better at professions involving verbal and nurturing skills such as teaching and law.
Because of innate gender-based differences, Stossel argued, feminists are wasting taxpayer money by filing sex ii scrimination suits. Stossel claimed women just do not want to go into certain professions, such as selling high commission items or engineering. Stossel also offered that dry cleaners and hairstylists should be allowed to charge women more for the same service because women pay more attention to details!
In the final moments of the "Boys and Girls" program, Stossel admitted that an experiment he showed early in the program did not actually work during his videotaping. Toddlers were separated from their mothers by an acrylic wall, and the girls were expected to cry helplessly and the boys to try to beat down the wall. Instead, during the taping, it was the boys who cried and the girls who beat the wall.
In a concession to his failed "experiment," Stossel admitted that individual differences between people are much more important than differences between the sexes. He asked naively, "Why not let people's natural inclinations take them wherever their potential allows?" Stossel chose to ignore the fact that discrimination prevents women from following their natural inclinations, and that the women's movement is fighting to break down those barriers.
If you would like to take action against negative media portrayals of women or the feminist movement, the Feminist Majority Foundation would like to hear from you. We are considering forming a volunteer Media Watch Committee. Please send a brief bio or resume and a 300 word explanation of why you would like to serve on such a committee to Colleen ider-mody, Director of Media Relations, Feminist Majority Foundation, 1600 Wilson Blvd., Suite 801, Arlington, VA, 22209.