June 2015 – Page 2 – thoughts of Melissa

The Gender Gap in Newspaper Bylines

Posted on June 8, 2015January 17, 2018 by melissaburgess

Last week, I came across a survey about the gender gap between male and female bylines at major newspapers across the United States. Newspapers surveyed included The New York Times, The Denver Post and The Chicago Sun-Times, and numbers were compiled from about 27,000 pieces of content produced during three months in 2014. The survey was engineered by the Women’s Media Center.

The numbers were generally not great. Male bylines largely outnumbered female bylines at most of the newspapers surveyed, including a 68 percent to 32 percent gap at The New York Times.

You can access the full report here, but it really struck a chord with me. As a journalism graduate (hello, Buffalo State College, class of 2012), and a female in that subject, it’s quite depressing to see the gender gap here, especially at some of the biggest newspapers in the country.

My curiosity was piqued, so I decided to undertake this project on a local level. For the month of June, I’ll be looking at the daily editions of The Buffalo News and comparing the percentage of male bylines to female bylines.

For the first week of June, male bylines outnumbered female bylines by a margin of 354-155 at The Buffalo News. This is a massive gender gap, albeit in just a one-week timeframe. Male bylines outnumbered female bylines EVERY day, including 56-21 and 59-19 numbers on Wednesday and Thursday of that week.

In addition to tallying overall daily counts, I broke it down by section. Males outnumbered females in EVERY section, aside from Sunday’s special Home & Style/Travel section. Male bylines outnumbered female bylines by a 55-8 margin in the sports section, and by a 48-16 margin in the business section. In the “cover” section, which includes the biggest local news, as well as national and world news – often pulled from the wire and written originally by reporters from papers such as The Los Angeles Times – women were outnumbered 82-37.

Even in the opinion section, women were vastly outnumbered by men, by a 58-20 margin.

The section where female bylines appeared the most: arts & entertainment. But even there, male bylines outnumbered the female bylines by a 48-38 margin, including a 21-4 margin in Thursday’s special “GUSTO” section.

For a full daily breakdown of the numbers, check out this PDF: Gender Gap TBN June 2015 Week 1.

A Better You, Uncategorized

Daily Challenge: One Day, Tech-Free

Posted on June 8, 2015January 17, 2018 by melissaburgess

Technology is one of the absolute greatest things in the modern world. Before we get into today’s daily challenge, let’s take a minute to appreciate what technology allows us to do. The inventions of mobile devices allows us to talk to anyone, around the world, no matter where we are, without being tied to a line in the wall. In the blink of an eye, we can check the news, weather, shopping lists, etc., all from the tips of our fingers.

Technology connects people; branches the gap between cultures, cities, nations; it helps to save lives, as is seen in the medical applications of technology. Without it, where would we be? Technology allows our cars to move, our planes to fly, and so much more.

So to go even one day without any modern technology would be nearly impossible. Many of us use computers or other modern tech for work purposes, or for school. We use to get where we need to go, to do what we need and want to do. Without technology, we might need to consider other hobbies, like running outside, or — God forbid — spending time with our family!

Today’s challenge is go one day without technology, as best you can. I’m obviously not saying to call into work and sit around staring into space all day. Consider your technology consumption and how often you may use certain devices, and try to break yourself away from that. Don’t check your email six times an hour. Leave your phone at home and take a walk around the neighborhood. Find ways to “connect” without being “connected.”

And yes – I know it’s easier said than done. But at the very least (and I’ve been trying to do this a lot more), if you’re spending time with someone – whether at dinner, watching TV, or just relaxing – put your phone down…. and leave it there.

A Better You, Uncategorized

Daily Challenge: Smile!

Posted on June 7, 2015January 17, 2018 by melissaburgess

One of the greatest – yet simplest – things you can do, right now, to improve your mood: smile.

Now, I’m a realist. I know it’s not possible to smile 24/7. Stuff happens, things get you down, and I imagine smiling THAT much would be enough to crush your jaw muscles pretty darn well.

But that doesn’t mean we can’t smile a bit more, does it? I think that’s one thing that may be lacking in some of our lives. It goes along with happiness and positive thinking, but today’s challenge is to find things to smile about. Whether it’s just grabbing your favorite snack at lunch, or seeing your favorite person, or winning $1 million dollars on a lottery ticket (don’t I wish!), there are things to smile about in almost every day.

So today, smile! Smile at yourself in the mirror. Smile when you walk down the street, rather than looking down at your feet with a nonchalant look on your face. Smile at someone when you hold the door open for them (but please don’t be creepy, okay?) Smile when you hear a great song, when you smell your favorite food cooking, or when you walk into your favorite place.

I’m not sure how true the saying is, that it takes more muscles to frown than it does to smile. But it has been proven that smiling IS good for your health; it helps lower your heart rate, reduces stress, increases productivity and will also help encourage OTHERS to smile, too. So not only are you spreading smiles to yourself, you’re helping spread the happiness to others. You’ll boost your immune system, kill pain and produce empathy. (For more benefits of smiling, check out this piece.)

It’s easy, it’s free and it takes such little effort, so today — just smile!

A Better You, Uncategorized

Daily Challenge: Self-Appreciation

Posted on June 6, 2015January 17, 2018 by melissaburgess

Today’s daily challenge relates to self-appreciation. Sometimes, it’s easy for us to appreciate the people around us – but somehow, quite difficult for us to appreciate ourselves. We find it hard to accept compliments, but are quick to praise others for something we like about them.

We’re putting an end to that today. It’s time to appreciate ourselves. Throughout the course of the day, I want you to work on three lists for yourself.

The first list: things that you can do well. What are you good at? Whether it’s making a great pizza, knitting, skateboarding, or listening — everyone is good at something. Come up with 5 things (or more!)

The second list: good qualities about yourself. Slightly different from the first list. Are you kind, giving, generous, sweet, caring, courageous? List at least five positive adjectives you’d use to describe yourself.

The third list: things you want to improve at. While this is all about self-appreciation, it’s important to recognize that you’re not perfect; no one is. But being able to recognize your weaker points, flaws, or the parts of you/your life that you want to improve, will only help to make you an even stronger person.

Self-love is a beautiful thing, folks. Below are some of my favorite quotes on the subject:

What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.  – Ralph Waldo Emerson

To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment. – Ralph Waldo Emerson

The most powerful relationship you will ever have is the relationship with yourself. – Steve Maraboli

To love oneself is the beginning of a life-long romance. – Oscar Wilde

A Better You, Uncategorized

Daily Challenge: Give to A Charity

Posted on June 5, 2015January 17, 2018 by melissaburgess

Today’s daily challenge can be completed in many different ways, but it’s a simple one: give to charity.

The first step: pick your cause. What are you going for? Gay rights, poverty, homelessness, animal rights, Alzheimer’s, a cure for cancer, etc. There are so many good, legitimate causes out there to champion for – but you have to start by picking one!

Next: research organizations. This is where you have to decide if you’re looking to assist on a local level, a national level or a global level. Do you want to donate to your local animal shelter? Or do you want to donate to a nationwide organization campaigning for a cancer cure? How about a global initiative aiming to end poverty? Charities and causes at all three levels are equally as important and equally as worthy, but it’s up to you to decide what you want to do.

Give it some thought, then research at least three to five different organizations related to your cause. Figure out what your donation would go toward. Research the organization itself; make sure it’s legitimate and that your money will really be going toward the cause. Then pick an organization – or give to all of them, if you want to and have the available funds/etc.

Whether you give $5, $50 or $500, charitable organizations will accept donations of any denomination and they’re all appreciated. Of course, you can also donate in other ways, such as donating your time by volunteering with an organization (obviously more time-consuming than a financial donation), donating items such as products, baked goods, etc., or by donating to the cause by spreading awareness about it and the organizations that champion for it.