Canada's Steve Paikin TV Show Criticized For Not Booking Enough Women
My comment under the piece by Canadian TV host Steve Paikin, host of "The Agenda With Steve Paikin:

We ask a variation of the same question every night when we book guests for The Agenda. Why, oh why, do we have such a tough time getting female guests on our program?

...We constantly talk about this in our production meetings. Why can't we get more female guests? I don't think it's the case that we're not trying hard enough. I frequently get and send emails to our producers at 2 o'clock in the morning. Our team works ridiculous hours to get the best program on the air we can. And still, those female guests prove to be elusive.

In that "Binders Full of Women" program we did, we learned some of the reasons why it's so hard to find female guests. For example, if we're doing a debate on economics, 90% of economists are men. So already you're fishing in a lake where the odds are stacked against you. And unfortunately, it's the same for foreign affairs, politicians, the sciences, labour issues, and the list goes on. The vast majority of "experts" in the subjects we cover are men.

But we've also discovered there also seems to be something in women's DNA that makes them harder to book. No man will ever say, "Sorry, can't do your show tonight, I'm taking care of my kids." The man will find someone to take care of his kids so he can appear on a TV show. Women use that excuse on us all the time.

No man will say, "Sorry, can't do your show tonight, my roots are showing." I'm serious. We get that as an excuse for not coming on. But only from women.

No man will say, "Sorry can't do your show tonight, I'm not an expert in that particular aspect of the story." They'll get up to speed on the issue and come on. Women beg off. And worse, they often recommend a male colleague in their place.

You have to understand: no producer sets out to book a show with five, white, 60-year-old, male guests. Think about it! Everyone in the current affairs business wants guests who are brilliant, but who also accurately represent the population they serve. For us, it goes beyond that. Many of us who work on The Agenda have kids. We want those kids to know that expertise doesn't just come in a 60-year-old white male package. We want our daughters, in particular, to see that expertise can come in a female package too.

But still, despite our commitment, despite our efforts, despite EVERYTHING, there are too many days when it feels as if female guests are an endangered species.

A comment I left under his post:

You had me on -- on a fascinating show -- for my ideas on rudeness, presumably, and not because I have girlparts. But I don't have children and my work is my priority. This makes one more available. Having children is a choice. Women who make that choice cannot expect to have the same life and opportunities as women and men who are more devoted to their work. PS Ladies with roots, buy one of those crayons at Amazon or put mascara on them. I mean, really...could no one figure that out? (When putting out your ideas is your priority, you tend to figure out a way.)

Oh, and in response to this by Paikin:

"No man will say, 'Sorry can't do your show tonight, I'm not an expert in that particular aspect of the story.' They'll get up to speed on the issue and come on"...

My mother told me to always say yes to opportunities, and then go do your homework and work like hell get yourself in shape for whatever you'd said yes to. More parents apparently need to teach their kids this.