Clare Forestier’s blog highlights the shocking questions female leaders face
You’ll have heard that the fight back has begun in Hollywood over the sexist questions aimed at actresses on the red carpet. She gets the: “Who are you wearing?” query while the man on her arm is asked about the existentialism of his latest role. It’s sparked the comedian, Amy Poehler’s ‘Ask Better Questions’ Campaign.
But what about the questions asked of successful women outside Tinsel-town?
How often is a male CEO get asked ‘How do you balance work and home life?’ Yet it seems the default query aimed at a female boss.
Reporters asked a female cosmonaut about the way she plans to style her hair in space, as well as how her children would handle her being away. Did anyone ever ask a male astronaut that? Presidential hopeful, Hilary Clinton faced questions about her favourite clothes designers. If I’d been a journalist at either of those press conferences, I would have hidden in shame. If the human rights lawyer, and George Clooney’s arguably better half, Amal Clooney, can answer “Ede & Ravenscroft” to the clothes question, then I think it’s time for businesswomen to respond to the balancing home life query with the same disdain. Treat it for what it is – complete and utter sexism.
It’s no longer appropriate in a job interview to ask a young woman if she plans to have children soon, so why is it permissible to ask a senior successful businesswoman about her family in a media interview? Mortifying example number three coming up: The US TV host, Matt Lauer asked the new CEO of General Motors, Mary Barra, if she could do a good job at both running the company and being a good mother.
Ok, so she’s the first woman to run a global car company, but is really such a novelty to see a woman get an important job? Could he really not see past her femaleness? If he had to comment on her being a woman, why not ask something more relevant and more interesting in that line, you know, maybe about her plans to improve equality in her work place?
Another shocker, “what do you weigh?” was aimed at a female British MP standing in the Labour leadership race. Leicester West MP, Liz Kendal swore at the reporter who asked her that. So she should have. As she says in a radio interview afterwards, “I just think it’s unbelievable that in the 21st Century women still get asked such very, very different questions from men.”
Stupid questions to women – but what about when a woman asks sensible questions of a man? I once met the Chief of the General Staff (CGS), the professional head of the British Army, at a dinner party. I was excited. I’m a journalist. I wanted to hear his take on current conflicts. I was 6 months pregnant at the time, and he just fixed on my bump and diverted all my intelligent questions to ones about grandchildren and food cravings. My husband got all the fascinating gems about politics and war. I could have been anyone in any job but he just saw me a woman first and foremost, and a brain second, if at all. Grrr.
I want to reverse the tables, put some businessmen in a room and ask them if they can actually be dads and CEOs equally well, did their gender ever hold them back, and how do they schedule their grooming appointments around business meetings? Although when a reporter tried something along those lines at an awards ceremony, and asked the actor, Kevin Spacey about his manicure, he accused them of being stoned. And would anyone really care? Of course not; Beyond the initial comedy in seeing their shock at the questions, you wouldn’t give a monkeys about how they empty a dishwasher occasionally or who helps them disguise their bald patch and scythe off their ear and nose hair.
To be fair though, this excellent interview with some well-known British men in the Huffington Post,reveals there is a way to get good answers from men when they’re asked the work and home life question.
When it comes to media handling of female politicos and scions of business, you know, the ones who make it to CEO of General Motors, POTUS, human rights lawyer etc., I’m hoping to put my money where my mouth is. I’m producing a whole range of comment and programming for MeetTheBoss TV looking at women in business, including issues like feminism, the wage gap, and female leadership. So I’ll be talking to some interesting women and getting their take on these issues and I won’t ask a single one about her beauty regime or balancing work and home-life.
About the author
Clare Forestier is a journalist who works for Meet The Boss TV where she moderates virtual business roundtables, interviews thought leaders, and writes and presents blogs and programmes on business issues. She has a background in broadcast news journalism and worked across the BBC and for UK commercial radio and television for 19 years. She has broadcast news to regional, national and international audiences, as a reporter, presenter, producer and online journalist. She has also worked as a media trainer, instructing scientists, academics and civil servants in media skills.
You can connect with Clare on Twitter
