Gloria Steinem Speaks Out on Jill Abramson Scandal: ‘It’s Obvious That It’s a Double Standard’

Steinem also called the New York Times “extraordinarily hypersensitive”

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Feminist icon Gloria Steinem weighed in on the controversial firing of New York Times executive editor Jill Abramson, calling the situation a “double standard.”

Steinem took part in a roundtable discussion on Women’s Media Center’s weekly radio show WMC Live with Robin Morgan. When asked about comments decrying Abramson as “difficult” or “brusque,” Steinem was quick to point out that male editors of the Times were even more demanding than Abramson.

“It’s obvious that it’s a double standard, a huge, huge double standard,” Steinem, who is also a co-founder of the WMC, said. “I mean, we have all known editors of newspapers, and especially the New York Times, I’m thinking of Abe Rosenthal, who was so difficult that he was legendary. So, there’s clearly a double standard.”

Also read: NYT Publisher Arthur Sulzberger Calls Jill Abramson Pay Stories ‘Lies,’ Regrets How Firing Was Handled

“I think what the New York Times doesn’t realize is there is also a different kind of double standard in the sense that people expect better behavior from them,” Steinem continued. “So they are going to engender much more anger and outrage and disappointment then, say, a network or some other journalistic body might.”

Earlier in the show, host Robin Morgan outlined the history of the Times and their relationship with women, beginning with owner Arthur Ochs banning women in the newsroom in the 19th century to a sex discrimination lawsuit against the paper in the 1970s, an incident that Steinem expanded upon.

“I think the New York Times has always been extraordinarily hypersensitive,” Steinem said. “When the women sued the New York Times for sex discrimination in the 70s, the Sulzberger of the era tried to get their lawyer fired from Columbia Law School for being their lawyer.”

Also read: New York Times Publisher Denies Jill Abramson’s Gender Played Role In Her Firing

Steinem went further, calling the newspaper’s overall character into question over their handling of the Abramson controversy.

“It’s not a problem of a woman who’s being too critical, it’s the problem of a newspaper that is absolutely incapable of taking criticism.”

The full audio of the show can be found here.

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