1. Women in Journalism and the History of Struggle

In your book “Undaunted”, you discuss the challenges women journalists have faced for over 180 years. What are the biggest structural barriers women face in today’s media landscape?

The greatest challenges for women in journalism today are first and foremost the same challenges faced by men: the diminution of the public’s trust in what it reads or hears or sees, the collapse of the long-standing advertising model that sustained the industry and allowed it to thrive, and the current lack of a reliable alternative. For women particularly, although there have been many advances over the past two centuries, threats to personal safety abound, both virtually and physically.

What sociological and cultural dynamics do you think lie behind the fact that women have historically risen to prominence in journalism during times of crisis?

It’s interesting, isn’t it? Historically, this has happened time and time again. In times of war, as men went off to battle, openings for women emerged out of necessity.  And in the case of individual organizations, as they neared collapse, we see women gaining opportunities that were rarely offered beforehand, as if to gain attention for outlet as it struggled to survive or as a “Hail Mary” pass, a desperation move. In the 1930s and 1950s, I found several examples of women becoming city editor or even managing editor in organizations that were on the brink of collapse. Inevitably, they collapsed soon after. Note the current prevalence of women in all positions in cable and television news and draw your own conclusion. Again, historically, there were always a few editors functioning under severe budgetary restraints who figured out it was possible to attract a higher caliber of talent for the little they could pay if they hired women, who worked for less (so delighted for the opportunity!) when the top class of men would go elsewhere for better pay. That pay disparity persists.

Do you believe that pioneering figures like Margaret Fuller and Nellie Bly still serve as sources of inspiration for women journalists today?

I know they do. Certainly Nellie Bly. Just check my daily Google Alert for her name or the queries I receive from middle school girls, wanting information for their school projects, or from podcasters who know a good story when they see one. Bly inspires them as she inspired me.

2. Media Ethics, Identity, and Representation

When researching the phenomenon of “passing” in journalism, how did you observe its effects on media professionals?

Do you mean undercover reporting? That’s too involved a subject for a short answer. I’d refer you to this piece of mine, written some years ago, which I note seems to be taught often:

https://brookekroeger.com/why-surreptitiousness-works/

What concrete steps do you think media organizations should take to overcome the underrepresentation of women and minority groups?

A perennial need and so much has been tried over the past fifty years or so. There’s progress, but never enough, and yet it remains so very important because we know the representation within a given outlet, the better, the truer, the product. I wish I had a better answer.

In your view, is “undercover” reporting still an ethical practice in modern journalism, or has it become outdated in the digital age?

It’s expensive to undertake and fraught with ethical and legal conundrums, but it is still practiced, sometimes very effectively. Despite the potential pitfalls, as a form, it responds so well to so many of journalism’s most important goals, especially: to inform by penetrating walled off institutions and situations that mean to keep the public out and to prompt those in a position to do so to act to right societal wrongs. The narrative power of the form is undeniable; it makes the significant interesting—another high journalistic value.

3. Looking Ahead and Professional Advice

What are your greatest concerns and hopes for the future of journalism as a profession?

That the field survive as those who care most would want it to and that we develop better ways for the public to be able to discern authentic information from mis- and deliberately false information.

What key strategies do you think are most important for women journalists to become more visible and influential in the industry?

Do great work. Be like my five Pulitzer Prize- winning former students: ambitious, disciplined, courageous, and indefatigable. Historically, exceptional talent and great networking skills have proved to be important, too, in bringing women to the fore. Even in times when there was almost no place for women in the field, the cream has risen. Be the cream.

What values and approaches would you personally recommend to aspiring journalists entering the field?

See above; add passion, diligence, and above all, integrity.