Elissa Strauss observes the lack of female by-lines in most major publications:
A perhaps deeper issue is that we still live in a world where news itself is gendered, where matters like making and raising human beings, gender identity, sexuality, and childhood and adolescence are considered something for the ladies, while subjects like war and politics, which are more likely to be covered by male writers and reporters, hold the monopoly on general interest stories. But I also think both editors and reporters often lack imagination when it comes to the ties between culture and gender and politics and the economy, and that perhaps we would all benefit from a more holistic view of how the world works.
Strauss includes responses she received from editors at The New Yorker (27% female bylines overall in 2010 according to the VIDA study), The New Republic (16%), The New York Review of Books (15%), and Harper's Magazine (21%). The Dish's staff is only 20 percent female. Does 20 percent gay help?
To help close the byline gap, Ann Friedman created a tumblr linking to the work of female journalists.
(Image: by Alexandros Vasmoulakis via Wooster Collective)