What is it about young feminists that turn even the most levelheaded people into maniacs?
Deborah Solomon, who I generally like, interviewed Andi Zeisler of Bitch magazine in The New York Times Magazine yesterday. And, well, look for yourself.
I think Zeisler comes off funny and smart--and as Amanda points out, way nicer than she had to be.
Check out this from Solomon:
It seems as if [feminism's] original vision of social equality has been undermined by third-wave feminists like yourself, who limit your critiques to, say, Tori Spelling’s breasts. Doesn’t the obsession with pop culture risk trivializing feminism?
What?! First of all, Bitch (which according to Solomon is too "unappealing" a name) is a pop culture magazine. It isn't indicative of all the work younger feminists are doing. That aside--so fucking what if feminists discuss pop culture?
Pop culture is relevant to younger women and reveals larger societal trends; isn't that important enough? Not to mention, discussing pop culture is a powerful tool for reaching younger women and making feminism accessible to them. But I guess Solomon wouldn't want the movement "undermined" by that sort of thing.
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I keep telling young feminists to get off my lawn while shaking my fist.
However, some of the problem with pop culture as a guide to anything is its emphemeral nature; by the time you wonder about Show X and its impact, it's off the air and down the memory hole.
grrrrrrrrrr ruff. I'm too old to be thought of as third wave,but I've been -- heh -- bitching about this misunderstanding about what third wave feminism is for months now. It's really irritating!
The interviewer was very clearly trying to get her all riled up and strident to justify her assumption that all feminists are humorless and angry.
I hate that this is the accepted form of journalism now.
I don't know Deborah Solomon, but her questions were ridiculously biased and just plain disrespectful. Andi's answers were right-on. Wow. Another reason not to read that newspaper.
deborah solomon is always this combative. it's the column's schtick. i thought andi did a pretty good job deflecting some criticism which, although overly simplified, comes from a legitimate place.
haha the last response was awesome.
Did you and your co-founder, Lisa Jervis, have any magazine experience before you started Bitch?
We were both interns at Sassy.
As opposed to Savvy.
Savvy was earlier, right? Maybe there will be a magazine someday for older women called Saggy.
Eh, as spark329 says, this is the attitude Solomon brings to this column every week--it's part of what makes it interesting, seeing how well the interviewees do under that kind pressure.
I really liked it here; Zeisler handles the questions better than almost anyone else I've read in the column. I just wish she'd made the point that critiquing pop culture is what Bitch does; other young feminists take other approaches. There's room for us all.
I too was suprised by her anatagonistic tone when I read this column.This column had really gone downhill lately, trying to goad and irritate several interview subjects.It was as if she was saying," Are you really a feminist? Prove it" Sad that she had to leave readers who might have been interested in 'Bitch' with a negative view.
Ugh. It all irritates me, but the part about "your screaming title" bugs me the most. Why must bold women be labelled shrill or screaming? It's getting tired. There's a female politician in Canada who's very outspoken and so intelligent and funny, yet her opponents always call her shrill to insult her. I like to think it's because there's nothing else they can find to pick about.
"..haha the last response was awesome."
[Savvy was earlier, right? Maybe there will be a magazine someday for older women called Saggy.]
Posted by: Anna
Why is that so "awesome?" Is that some kind of shot at the over 30 crowd? Or the over 40? Sometimes girls think they're being bitchy chic when in reality they're just being cunty.
For the clueless, Solomon always writes columns like this, no matter who the guest is. It has nothing to do with Zeisler.
Zeisler walked into that interview knowing what to expect, that's why she handled it so well. I'm sure she hasn't lost any sleep over it.
Yeah, I think you’re right in that Solomon comes off worse. I don’t think Andi Zeisler comes off bad at all really but I suppose that betrays my allegiances…
I’m remembering that panel at the NOW conference on media reform and what seemed like massive, generational gaps between members of the session. I was surprised then that Bitch did not enter into the discussion despite the lovefest for Geena Davis and Bree Williamson’s direct involvement with pop culture as a soap opera star. Much of that panel was confusing though, including the moderator’s domination of the discussion, said gaps, and the lack of preparedness of the panelists.
Wow, I'm really laying into them. I was just disappointed with that session. The best parts were towards the end when folks began expressing that disappointment and spoke of the Real Hot 100, etc.
Blah blah blah.
The interview didn't really bother me. Solomon is known for her borderline-harassment interview style, and Zeisler handled her questions really well. Mostly, I'm just excited to see Bitch featured in such a prominent place in the NYT Magazine.
whitney, i'm interested to hear about that panel--i didn't go to that one. could you email me?