feminism

Sam Newman-gate: Advertiser Boycott Encouraged

9:25AM Clem Bastow | The fallout from Sam Newman’s hilarious mannequin stunt on the Footy Show continues to ripple through the industry, with word that other major advertisers could join ANZ in pulling their funds from the Show’s ad breaks. Women’s Forum Australia, a national lobby group, is – understandably – pressuring major advertisers to take a stand against the Footy Show’s dark ages sexual politics. The director of Women’s Forum Australia, Melinda Tankard Reist, said a wider boycott would have broad support. “This is definitely worth us doing,” she said. “The program has caused a great deal of hurt to a lot of women and if The Footy Show can’t respond in a proper manner, then maybe they will respond when they start losing money.” The group, led by a Canberra-based board of female academics, doctors and welfare experts, will consider the issue at a board meeting next week. Advertisers or sponsors on the show include Nissan, Mitre 10, Safeway, Mazda, Arnotts, Telstra and Toyota. Current advertisers McDonald’s, Foxtel and adidas ruled out a boycott. Apparently a show staffer has quit over the kerfuffle as well, though he a) requested anonymity and b) issued a “no comment” as to his exact reasons for leaving the gig. Basically whatever happens through all this, it would just be nice to have it end with Sam Newman eating shit his words and being made to make a formal apology – on the day The Footy Show is cancelled for being irrelevant and is replaced by Straughnie. More »

Sam Newman-gate: Anz Withdraws ‘Footy Show’ Ads

9:42AM Clem Bastow | No doubt the cro magnon men at the Footy Show continue to scratch their heads at the fallout from Sam “Gloria Steinem” Newman’s stapling of a photo of Caroline Wilson’s face to a lingerie-clad mannequin (”What? You mean women don’t like this shit? That’s un-Australian!”). After digging themselves ever deeper into the hole they’d started, the Footy clowns will no doubt be amazed to hear that ANZ has withdrawn their advertising from the show, with most media commentators taking that as a statement against being associated with Newman et al’s boof-headed sexual politics. The bank last night confirmed it had deliberately dissociated itself from one of Australia’s highest rating sports shows. In what is a largely symbolic demand, rather than a costly one for Channel Nine, the ANZ will continue its current commercial agreement with the network but has directed that its ads not be aired during the program. “We are not currently running adverts on The Footy Show. It was a commercial decision, as The Footy Show in its current format does not allow us to connect well with the customer base,” an ANZ spokeswoman told The Age. What really amazed me through all this was Newman’s confident ranting about women’s lack of a place in AFL. You know, apart from all the nurses, managers, press agents, mums who cut up the oranges at VicKick games and drive the boys to footy at the arse crack of every Saturday morning, not to mention the women’s League and all the girls playing VicKick and in high schools everywhere. More »

Female Afl Boardmembers Request Gender Relations Counselling For Sam Newman; Have They Got A Spare Decade?

10:13AM Clem Bastow | We told you yesterday about Sam Newman’s latest “hilarious” stunt on The Footy Show. Well, in news that will likely surprise no one but Sam “It Was Funny” Newman himself, the AFL’s most senior female figures have contacted Channel Nine requesting that, at the very least, Newman receive counselling about appropriate behaviour towards women. Signatory Dr Susan Alberti, a prominent businesswoman and Western Bulldogs board member, said his behaviour was out of line. “It’s just smutty and crass. He needs to be brought into line to respect women for the positions they hold in the community.” “You have to earn respect and he’s not doing that. Women will get sick of it and turn off,” she said. “Women are being degraded on television and enough is enough.” Other signatories included AFL club board members Sally Capp (Collingwood), Beverly Knight (Essendon) and Peggy Haines (Richmond). Wilson described the stunt as degrading, humiliating and insulting. Can you see what is wrong with this picture? Year after year, we keep being told about efforts to “educate” young footy players – and in this case, not so young footy players – about how best to treat women. You know, like, has she had a few drinks? Probably best not to rape her, then, son! Is she wearing a short skirt? It doesn’t mean you can put your hand up it, toodle pip! What sort of monster has the AFL created where such basic human decency no-brainers even need to be put on the curriculum? We’re inclined to think a better idea in this instance, at least, is to put Sam Newman in a cell and let Bev Knight play bad cop/bad cop with him and a rolling pin. More »

The Age Celebrates 100 Years Of Photography With A Nude Upskirt Oops

10:39AM Clem Bastow | Did you know The Age was celebrating a centenary of photojournalism? They are; three cheers, hip hip hip etc. This is, of course, a chance to upload a big, shiny multimedia special full of stirring shots from the past 100 years including incredible images of war, peace, sport, everyday life in Australia and just about everything including the kitchen sink. The gallery and presentation can be found here, and there are some stunning shots held within. So you can imagine our amusement when we saw the photo they’d chosen to sum up 100 years of photojournalistic greatness on the front page of TheAge.com.au: It’s true, it’s a brilliant photo – in its original incarnation, at least, as taken by Angela Wyllie in 2005, the year the Melbourne Cup Carnival was whipped by strong winds – but two things are troubling us about its use on the front page. Firstly, the fact that we scoured each of the “Century Of Pictures” galleries and failed to find it, and secondly, does TheAge.com.au really have such low expectations of its readership’s intelligence that they need to resort to tits’n'arse blasts to get hits on an otherwise thoughtfully-composed and fascinating photo special? More »

The Food Network Don’t Want A Motor In The Back Of Nigella Lawson’s Honda

11:18AM Clem Bastow | Between all the too-hairy, too-skinny, too-mental coverage womankind is getting in the media these days, you’d be forgiven for thinking that there are better places to be than in the spotlight. And now it seems even sextastic television chefs – i.e., people who are generally accepted as being able to eat FOOD, as opposed to the sunlight and roasted almonds that the other female stars are served up – aren’t immune to the exacting pressure of waistlines and bum sizes. Evidently TV chef Nigella Lawson, she of the finger-licking-goodness and dangerous curves, has been deemed too “fat” for US televisions. The New York Post said: “Our spies at the Food Network say Nigella has way overeaten. “The result is a butt like a horse. “Her director is now doing back flips to not show her below the waist.” A Food Network spokesman denied any filming changes. While we’re not entirely sure why they would need to film Nigella’s bum in the first place (other than to revel in its wondrousness, of course), we can’t help but issue a world weary grooooaaaan when we read about things like this. Yes, Nigella has traded on her appearance/sex appeal, but come on, dudes – she’s a chef. She’s not America’s Next Top Model. More »

Fear Not, Men Of The World: Celine Dion Has Waxed!

10:25AM Clem Bastow | Lordy… Remember the kerfuffle that blew up because Celine Dion dared to go onstage without submitting her body to a full hair removal session? Well, you’ll be “pleased” to know that she has capitulated to the gaze and made sure all that “unsightly” hair on her thighs is gone, daddy, gone. Now if she could just work on Third World poverty and maybe a cure for cancer, that would be ace. There’s a pet. Celine appeared to have taken care of all her grooming details, including waxing her thighs. And there was no repeat of the furry incident as the smooth-skinned French-Canadian star took to the stage looking completely fuzz-free. No doubt those poor, poor souls who had to witness her unwaxed thighs that night are looking into some sort of post-traumatic stress class action. It’s only reasonable, really. More »

World’s Press Shocked To Discover Women Actually Have Body Hair

9:30AM Clem Bastow | There’s nothing that riles us up more than when the press has a field day over a woman who chooses not to maintain her body hair to the same pre-pubescent standards as every other starlet (remember the Julia Roberts underarm fiasco?), and the latest victim in the war against full womanhood is Celine Dion. A “Celebrity Blogger” who shall not be named was the first to kick the “story” off, which we more or less expect given the quality nature of his blog, but we were dismayed to see that ‘proper’ news outlets followed on. To wit, the Daily Mail: Her face had been carefully made up, nails polished and outfit primped just so, but Celine Dion forgot one important thing before performing in Toyko over the weekend. It appeared the My Heart Will Go On singer had forgotten to wax her legs, with severe back lighting revealing their rather hairy state as she strutted around the stage. But despite the grooming oversight, she succeeded in wowing the crowd with a typically dazzling performance. New York’s Daily News got in on the beauty editor witch hunt, too. What?! She FORGOT TO WAX HER LEGS? We’re surprised there weren’t mass walk-outs and demands for refunds! Oh but, hold on, it’s okay – even though she was a hairy hosebeast, she still managed to sing well. Lucky for her… Unwaxed legs, what a complete affront to everyone’s senses. Perhaps these news dudes would like to book in for an upper-thigh wax, and then see whether they still feel that Dion “forgot” to carry out what they seem to be implying is a basic necessity, or whether they’d rather stick pencils in their eardrums than slather themselves in hot wax before yanking out their body hair. More »

We’re Sure Madonna Is Thrilled With This Choice Of Photo

4:13PM Clem Bastow | As is depressingly the case with all women in the public eye, discussion on the topic of Madonna must now detail her age in equal measure as her career. Thus, there has been just as much coverage lately of Madge’s wrinkles (or lack of) and her upcoming 50th birthday as there has been her soon-to-be-released new album. However, any way you look at it, it’s probably safe to say that – old or not – she probably wouldn’t approve of the following photo, if given the chance and a sheet of contact prints to tick and cross: An “old English pub“, you say? Would that be because she is OLD herself? Because, you know, if you hadn’t heard, she’s turning 50 this year! We know, 50 – that’s almost as old as the Earth itself! Time to retire, grandma! Etc, etc. More »

It’s Probably Safe To Say Fay Weldon Doesn’t Think Much Of The Spice Girls, Then

11:49AM Clem Bastow | Fay Weldon has opened up a scathing attack on the Spice Girls from within the Daily Mail, in a piece called “How the Spice Girls have killed feminism, subverted morality and embarrassed us all”. In case the title didn’t sum it up for you, the noted essayist and writer comes out guns blazing against the girlpower exponents, and by the end of the article, we were begrudgingly agreeing with her (to the tune of the Greatest Hits). In short, she thinks they’re rubbish, innit. What chance did formal sex education have when faced with the catchy lyrics – written by men, of course – that told young girls to indulge in such things as “weekend love” and encouraged “playing games”? What it did of course was to separate love from sex. The Spice Girls killed romance. Their singable, suggestive lyrics took away the innocence of the playground – or at least what was left of it. And it’s never coming back. They turned difficult love into temporary sex, and reduced female aspiration to a series of consumer choices. They turned little girls into paedophile bait, and in doing so they helped destroy our concept of childhood. And why am I embarrassed for myself? Because I admit I once rather liked the Spice Girls. There’s much more than that in the lengthy editorial, including a moment where – in a seemingly giddy bout of schadenfreude – Weldon notes that chickenpox is apparently sweeping ‘Spice Force Five’, their rented 747 and flying creche/dressing room. However, as much as she’s raining on the fivesome’s ripsnorting reunion parade, she makes some salient points, so read it with your lunchtime juice/muffin/Prozac and feel that little bit more enlightened. *pushes glasses up bridge of nose* More »