“The BBC has a serious problem with older women. Despite years of pressure, including legal action, the corporation is still resisting putting older women on TV,” she said.
“Of course, the BBC will deny it has an issue with women in their 50s and beyond being on screen, particularly on primetime. Inevitably, it will trot out a handful of names to try and prove the point, but it is a losing argument.”
It’s the natural flipside of toothsome young totty getting presenter gigs.
This does not, of course, apply to Ms. O’Reilly – she is a serious journalist who was only ever hired for her professional skills – but birds who do not look like a bag of spanners do get hired when those who do don’t. That is, TV is a visual medium, looks matter. Looks, in our society – among hom sap – do tend to mean youth and vitality for women. Or, to be frank, fertility and shaggability.
Every Ms. Willoughby hired for her obvious professional talents means some old trout not being so. To complain about this is not to complain about the BBC it is to complain about human beings.
Something of the reverse applies to men. The number of pouting 22 year olds presenting programmes is? The number of gravitas laden elders? The base calculation hasn’t changed, just the expression of it – looks matter in a visual medium and what is considered good looks is different across the sexes (OK, genders if you must) of our sexually dimorphic species.
Ho Hum.
“This does not, of course, apply to Ms. O’Reilly – she is a serious journalist who was only ever hired for her professional skills”
But has anyone noticed the young bint being worse at the job? Doing pieces to camera and fluff interviews isn’t exactly a job that needs 30 years of experience. 10 years climbing from local radio should do it.
People only watch Countryfile to look at the baa-lambs and moo-cows. When the presenters come on, they go back to their Sudokus in the Mail on Sunday.
“People only watch Countryfile to look at the baa-lambs and moo-cows. When the presenters come on, they go back to their Sudokus in the Mail on Sunday.”
Just like Match of the Day, then, mutatis mutandis.
Charlie dimmock’s still on TV- but then again she always could wield a spade and knows what she’s doing. When they could literally get anyone out of media school, who’d be as good then why not? My m8 got engaged at uni to someone doing media studies. First Job at sky- immediately put her on outside broadcast. Still doing the same now i believe. Mind you she’s still a corker.
erm bit of a P.s. i just looked her up. She took sky to court for overlooking her for promotion …oh dear.
If an older woman is a real expert in some matter or has special skills like a gardener –fine.
But if it is tiresome “news” ie Marxist crap than some women that you can distract yourself with erotic thoughts about is easier. They are not there to b listened to. If you watch news at all.