Women a Rare Sight on Sunday Talk Shows

Might this be the subject of a roundtable discussion next weekend? According to research by American University’s Women & Politics Institute, women continue to be snubbed from the five major Sunday morning news shows, with female lawmakers composing only 13.5 percent of the total appearances by all representatives and senators this year. And now network producers, Capitol Hill staffers, and women’s advocates are seeking out who to blame, Politico reports. Some claim women avoid the spotlight, while many publicity-hungry men jump at media coverage; more obviously, though, women make up a mere 17 percent of the membership of the House and Senate, which means there aren’t enough women to fully represent society as a whole on these shows. Simply put—and regardless of who’s at fault— access for women to influential media platforms remains limited, even despite network changes, according to the report.