By now, most of you have seen the cover of Newsweek on which Sarah Palin is depicted wearing running shorts. The photo was originally taken for the June 2009 issue of Runner’s World, for which shorts were the appropriate attire. As Palin has said, and I believe her, she would never have posed in shorts for a national news magazine.
What possessed Newsweek’s editorial staff to approve this picture for the cover of their magazine is quite frankly beyond me. While some pundits on the right have suggested that the photo reveals Newsweek’s political partisanship (which is clearly possible), I don’t remember seeing Newt Gingrich or Bill Bennett’s thighs when they were out flacking their books. If the move was a partisan decision, it also was a stupid one, designed to alienate any thinking woman.
It is clear that the Newsweek staff don’t think much of Palin, asking the question, “How do you solve a problem like Sarah?” and letting us know that “she’s bad news.” And that is fine with me. Palin chose public life and is conducting a carefully orchestrated book tour full of interviews and book signings. She is fair game with regard to her experience, her political point of view, and even her apparent disinterest in taking responsibility for anything that happened during the 2008 presidential campaign (see any of her recent interviews for examples of how someone else is almost always to blame). So why was it necessary for Newsweek to take the low road when it came to selecting Palin’s cover photo?
Since the cover first appeared, I have read any number of editorials and web postings by both men and women who suggest that the Newsweek cover photo of Palin is simply representative of the media’s current style of political coverage. I beg to differ—it smacks of sexism to me (albeit sexism as a means of inflicting political damage). Anyone who was awake during the 2008 presidential campaign knows that women leaders are judged differently—often on their looks, their voices, and their hair and clothing choices (although in this case, Palin’s choice of clothing was apparently made by the Newsweek staff).
I must confess that I find it difficult to defend Sarah Palin when she is the target of sexist remarks (or photos) because in my experience she doesn’t appear to play for the feminist team—except perhaps when it serves her own purposes. She is, in my opinion, one more example of women who benefit from the tremendous gains made by feminist leaders and yet refuse to acknowledge the value of the movement.
But defend her I will because sexism as a means of taking down your political opponents is still sexism. All is not fair in love and war, and winning electoral battles while ceding the moral ground is no victory at all. Sexism in political and professional settings, and as used by the media to undermine women in both arenas, is unacceptable in this day and age. Newsweek owes Palin (and the rest of us) an apology.
Cynthia
p.s. You may write to Newsweek to express your concern about the November 23, 2009, cover at:
Newsweek Domestic Edition
Letters to the Editor for the U.S. print edition: Letters@newsweek.com
Mailing Address:
Newsweek
395 Hudson St.
New York, NY 10014
