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The women's page (sometimes called home page or women's section) of a
newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as politics, business, sports a ...
was a section devoted to covering news assumed to be of interest to women. Women's pages started out in the 19th century as society pages and eventually morphed into features sections in the 1970s. Although denigrated during much of that period, they had a significant impact on journalism and in their communities.


History


Early women's pages

In 1835 ''
New York Herald The ''New York Herald'' was a large-distribution newspaper based in New York City that existed between 1835 and 1924. At that point it was acquired by its smaller rival the ''New-York Tribune'' to form the '' New York Herald Tribune''. His ...
'' publisher James Gordon Bennett Jr., created the first newspaper society page. In the century's final two decades, a "motley assemblage" of stories presumed to be of interest to women began to be gathered together into a single section of newspapers in Britain, Canada, and the US. In the 1880s and 1890s, newspaper publishers such as Joseph Pulitzer started developing sections of their papers to attract women readers, who were of interest to advertisers. Industrialization had profoundly increased the number of branded consumer products, and advertisers recognized that women were the primary purchasing decision makers for their households. Advertising within women's sections focussed on department stores. Proprietors of newspapers competed for women readers, who both boosted subscription sales but were of great interest to advertisers, who recognized that women were important decisionmakers for family purchases. News historian Gerald Baldasty put it that, "For the newspaper industry, a woman's charm was purely financial." Sections focused on the "Four F's" – family, food, furnishings, and fashion – and on society news and advice and recipe columns. Most women covered by the sections were wives, daughters, or brides of prominent men. Newspapers typically hired women to staff these sections. The popularization of women's pages coincided with the first wave of feminism. Media scholar
Dustin Harp Dustin may refer to: Places in the United States * Dustin, Nebraska * Dustin Township, Holt County, Nebraska * Dustin, Oklahoma Other uses * Dustin (name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or surname * Dustin ...
said she found no evidence that women of the time viewed these sections otherwise than positively, as they offered a rare opportunity for expression, but also surmised that feminists may have viewed them with mixed reactions as the sections also reinforced stereotypes. By 1886 the ''
New York World The ''New York World'' was a newspaper published in New York City from 1860 until 1931. The paper played a major role in the history of American newspapers. It was a leading national voice of the Democratic Party. From 1883 to 1911 under publi ...
'' carried columns aimed at women. By 1891 the Sunday issues featured a page of fashion and society coverage. By 1894 the daily issues featured a page headlined "For and About Women." By 1900, many metropolitan newspapers had a women's section covering society and fashion. By 1920 women's page journalism, sometimes called "home page journalism" was being taught in colleges. As late as 1949 women's page journalism classes at Columbia University included instruction that news of "crises, disaster, tragedies" belonged on the front pages while the inside pages were "like the inside of a home" and that women journalists should contribute by focussing on wholesome, uplifting topics in the women's sections. According to media scholar Jan Whitt, the implication was that only male journalists understood and could write about hard news. In addition to being prevented from working in other departments, women journalists working in the women's section were often denigrated by male journalists. Their working spaces were given names such as the "hen coop." For decades, the majority of women journalists worked in women's sections.


World War II

As in many fields, journalism opportunities for US women changed dramatically during World War II. Many men left their jobs to go to war, and women were tapped to perform those jobs, which before the war had only been open to men. Many women were required to sign waivers agreeing to leave these jobs when the war ended, but during the war women journalists developed their skills and interests to include coverage of hard news, and they returned to their former positions with that new knowledge. Many, like
Dorothy Jurney Dorothy Misener Jurney (May 8, 1909 – June 19, 2002) was an American journalist. As women's page editor for the ''Miami Herald'', she shifted the focus of those pages from the "Four F's – family, food, fashion, and furnishings" – to ...
, were asked to train their male replacements before being relegated back to the women's section. Jurney was told by the managing editor that she was not a candidate for city editor because she was a woman.


Post World War II

In the years after World War II, many women's page journalists and editors, many of whom had covered hard news during the war, attempted to change the focus of women's sections to cover substantive, important news of interest to women. Media scholar Kimberly Wilmot Voss said of this period that women's sections "came into their own." Sections became larger and covered increasingly progressive content, but "the perceptions that the sections were fluff continued for years." Post-1960, the trend continued and some newspapers' sections were covering stories that weren't being covered in news sections, such as exposés of county foster homes, stories about domestic abuse, reproductive rights, and other substantive topics.
Marie Anderson Marie Willard Anderson (April 19, 1916 – July 2, 1996) was a Miami, Florida newspaper editor. Under her leadership in the 1960s the ''Miami Herald'' Women's Page transformed into a nationally recognized progressive women's section, one of the fi ...
of the ''
Miami Herald The ''Miami Herald'' is an American daily newspaper owned by the McClatchy Company and headquartered in Doral, Florida, a List of communities in Miami-Dade County, Florida, city in western Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County and the M ...
'' led her section to discontinue society coverage. Under her leadership the section won so many Penney-Missouri Awards (see below) in the 1960s that the paper was asked to retire from the competition. These trends were pioneered by smaller metropolitan newspapers such as the ''Herald'', the ''
Dallas Times-Herald The ''Dallas Times Herald'', founded in 1888 by a merger of the '' Dallas Times'' and the '' Dallas Herald'', was once one of two major daily newspapers serving the Dallas, Texas (USA) area. It won three Pulitzer Prizes, all for photography, and ...
'', and the ''
Detroit Free Press The ''Detroit Free Press'' is the largest daily newspaper in Detroit, Michigan, US. The Sunday edition is titled the ''Sunday Free Press''. It is sometimes referred to as the Freep (reflected in the paper's web address, www.freep.com). It primari ...
''. Many major US papers were slow to follow, including the ''
New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'', whose women's section was named "Food, Fashion, Furnishings, and Family" until 1971.


J. C. Penney-Missouri Awards

In the US, the J. C. Penney-Missouri Awards (often called the Penney-Missouri Awards and later the Missouri Lifestyle Journalism Awards) were the most prestigious awards for women's page writing and editing and the only nationwide recognition specifically for women's page journalism. The awards were inaugurated in 1960 to recognize women's sections with progressive content that covered stories other than society, club, and fashion news. They were often described as the Pulitzers of women's page journalism at a time when most women's page coverage wasn't considered for other prestigious journalism awards. The awards presentations each year were accompanied by influential workships that encouraged women's page editors to focus on more substantive, progressive issues. 1966 keynote speaker
Marjorie Paxson Marjorie Paxson (August 13, 1923 – June 17, 2017) was an American newspaper journalist, editor, and publisher during an era in American history when the women's liberation movement was setting milestones by tackling the barriers of discriminat ...
told attendees, "It's time we started putting some hard news into (our pages.) It's time we accepted the responsibility of making our readers aware." Because women were not at the time accepted into the
Society of Professional Journalists The Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ), formerly known as Sigma Delta Chi, is the oldest organization representing journalists in the United States. It was established on April 17, 1909, at DePauw University,2009 SPJ Annual Report, letter ...
, these workshops represented an important networking opportunity that wasn't otherwise available to women journalists. Rodger Streitmatter, writing in the scholarly journal ''
Journalism History Journalism is the production and distribution of reports on the interaction of events, facts, ideas, and people that are the "news of the day" and that informs society to at least some degree. The word, a noun, applies to the occupation (profes ...
'', credits the awards for helping to change women's pages journalism from the traditional types of coverage to covering more substantive stories.


Women's movement

The
second wave of feminism Second-wave feminism was a period of feminist activity that began in the early 1960s and lasted roughly two decades. It took place throughout the Western world, and aimed to increase equality for women by building on previous feminist gains. Wh ...
in the 1960s and 1970s coincided with newspapers' movements to replace women's pages with features and lifestyles sections. While women's page editors were pushing their management to allow them to cover issues of importance to women, many feminists were criticizing the very idea of "women's" news, arguing that news important to women was news that should be covered in the main section of the newspaper and that segregating women's news to within one section marginalized that news and implicitly indicated the rest of the newspaper was for men. They believed so-called "women's sections" should be eliminated. Many women's page editors considered themselves part of or supporters of the women's movement and were proud of their role in covering topics important to women readers. In many newspapers the only coverage of the women's movement was within the women's section. The 1965 announcement of the formation of the National Organization for Women ran between an article about
Saks Fifth Avenue Saks Fifth Avenue (originally Saks & Company; Colloquialism, colloquially Saks) is an American Luxury goods, luxury department store chain headquartered in New York City and founded by Andrew Saks. The original store opened in the F Street and ...
and a recipe for turkey stuffing. Women's pages of the time were accused of talking down to women. A 1971 ''
Glamour Glamour may refer to: Arts Film * ''Glamour'' (1931 film), a British film * ''Glamour'' (1934 film), an American film * ''Glamour'' (2000 film), a Hungarian film Writing * ''Glamour'' (magazine), a magazine for women * ''The Glamour ...
'' editorial asked, "What has your women's page editor done for you lately?" and said the sections reduced women to traditional roles. In 1978, sociologist
Cynthia Fuchs Epstein Cynthia Fuchs Epstein is an American sociologist and emeritus distinguished professor of sociology at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. Fuchs Epstein served as president of the American Sociological Association in 2006. Pro ...
argued that news of the women's movement did not belong in the women's section because "just by appearing there, the stories maintain the status quo, for they tell both men and women that news of the women's movement is not of general concern." That same year Harvey Molotch wrote that news was "essentially men talking to men. The women's pages are a deliberate exception: Here it is the case that women who work for men talk to women. But in terms of the important information...women are not ordinarily present." According to media scholar Voss, the argument that if women's pages were eliminated, news of importance to women would end up on the front pages turned out to be incorrect, and that instead much of it simply did not appear in the newspapers after the elimination of the women's section. As late as 1993 media scholar M. Junior Bridge found that the incidence of references to women on the front page of the ''New York Times'' had only risen to 13% of names mentioned, up from 5% in 1989. ''Times'' executive editor Max Frankel reacted the announcement of this study by suggesting more women would appear on the front page if the front page were "covering local teas."


Features sections

In 1969, ''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
'' under the leadership of Ben Bradlee replaced the women's page,"For and About Women" with a section called "Style", which was designed to attract a broader audience. The ''
Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
'' followed suit with "View" the next year and soon metropolitan newspapers throughout the US stopped publishing explicitly-named women's sections in favor of "lifestyle" sections. According to Harp, this represented the "birth of the modern-day feature section." Society news all but disappeared from these sections, and wedding announcements and club news became minor segments of most newspapers. In many cases the editors who had been managing the women's sections were demoted and male editors installed to manage the new features sections. This happened twice to Paxson, when two different newspapers eliminated their women's sections, which she had been editing, demoted her, and hired a man as features editor.


Resumption of women's sections

In the late 1980s, some newspapers reintroduced sections explicitly designed to attract female readers. The ''
Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...
'' called their section "WomanNews." As late as 2006 the section was being included within the "Tempo" features section on Wednesdays.


Impact

Women's sections, while marginalized by other journalists and by members of the women's movement, made major contributions in their communities. Working with local
women's clubs The woman's club movement was a social movement that took place throughout the United States that established the idea that women had a moral duty and responsibility to transform public policy. While women's organizations had always been a par ...
– another group often denigrated – some women's sections pinpointed community problems and helped develop solutions. Women's sections in some metropolitan areas were instrumental in establishing social programs and libraries. In a 1960s-era speech,
Marie Anderson Marie Willard Anderson (April 19, 1916 – July 2, 1996) was a Miami, Florida newspaper editor. Under her leadership in the 1960s the ''Miami Herald'' Women's Page transformed into a nationally recognized progressive women's section, one of the fi ...
told women's page journalists, "be a motivating source in your community. If your town doesn't do something, call attention to it." Club editors in many metropolitan areas held workshops to train local club leaders how to create and describe projects that would make their work newsworthy. The journalists encouraged the clubwomen first to tackle newsworthy work, and then to write press releases useful in the selection and development of stories. This work encouraged women's clubs to upgrade their programming, resulting in meaningful work being done by women's clubs which had formerly been primarily social groups. Some women's page editors developed inclusive policies, often before the other sections of the newspaper. The ''Miami Herald'' ran a series profiling black residents in 1962, "well before the front pages of the newspaper addressed societal inequities." Edee Greene of the ''Fort Lauderdale News'' rans photos of black brides before it was done at most newspapers. In 1968 '' Ebony'' editor
Ponchitta Pierce Ponchitta Pierce (born August 5, 1942) is a television host and producer, a journalist, a speech writer and communication expert. Pierce began her journalism career at Ebony magazine, became the New York editor and eventually the New York Bureau ...
was invited by
Theta Sigma Phi The Association for Women in Communications (AWC) is an American professional organization for women in the communications industry. History Theta Sigma Phi The Association for Women in Communications began in 1909 as Theta Sigma Phi (), an ho ...
to write a piece for the professional association's publication ''Matrix'' on including black women in women's pages. By the 1960s, many metropolitan women's pages were covering social issues, which weren't typically being covered in news sections. Women's pages in some newspapers covered domestic violence, the
Equal Rights Amendment The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) is a proposed amendment to the United States Constitution designed to guarantee equal legal rights for all American citizens regardless of sex. Proponents assert it would end legal distinctions between men and ...
, abortion, syphilis, women's prison, prostitution, child molestation, and other issues before their papers' news sections did. Media scholar Julie Golia concluded that women's page journalism has been "dismissed by contemporaries and scholars as homogenouse drivel" and "long been misunderstood because no one has conducted an in-depth multi-decade analysis of content and evolution. Voss concluded they helped change the newspaper industry.


Notable journalists


Reporters, photographers, and columnists


Australia

*
Agnes Goode Agnes Knight Goode, ''née'' Fleming (31 January 1872 – 20 February 1947), best known as Mrs. A. K. Goode, was an Australian social and political activist. A contemporary report called her "... a vigorous speaker, with a keen, logical mind and ...
*
Harriet Hooton Harriet (Ettie) Hooton (13 July 1875 – 21 April 1960) was a Western Australia, West Australian women's activist and editor. She was active in a number of organisations including the Women's Service Guild, the National Council of Women in West ...
*
Ethel Knight Kelly Ethel Knight Kelly (born Ethel Knight Mollison, 28 January 1875 – 22 September 1949) was a Canadian–Australian actress, writer, and social leader. She appeared in a number of plays and wrote four books. Early life Kelly was born in Saint John ...
*
Antoinette Kensel Thurgood Antoinette Kensel Thurgood (?–?) was an American Philanthropy, philanthropist, Christians, Christian women's community organizer, and newspaper editor. She was the founder of the Women's Conference of the Churches of Christ in Victoria (Australia) ...


Bangladesh

* Iffat Ara


Canada

*
Gladys Arnold Gladys Arnold (October 5, 1905 – September 29, 2002) was a Canadian journalist, best known for her work in France for the Canadian Press during World War II. Arnold was born in Macoun, Saskatchewan, Canada. Early life Arnold was born in Macoun ...
* Francis Marion Beynon *
Sarah Anne Curzon Sarah Anne Curzon née Vincent (1833 – November 6, 1898) was a British-born Canadian poet, journalist, editor, and playwright who was one of "the first women's rights activists and supporters of liberal feminism" in Canada.Kym Bird,Curzon, Sara ...
* Joan Fraser * Elizabeth Smart *
Jane Jacobs Jane Jacobs (''née'' Butzner; 4 May 1916 – 25 April 2006) was an American-Canadian journalist, author, theorist, and activist who influenced urban studies, sociology, and economics. Her book '' The Death and Life of Great American Cities ...
*
Ethel Knight Kelly Ethel Knight Kelly (born Ethel Knight Mollison, 28 January 1875 – 22 September 1949) was a Canadian–Australian actress, writer, and social leader. She appeared in a number of plays and wrote four books. Early life Kelly was born in Saint John ...
*
Florence Randal Livesay Florence Hamilton Randal Livesay (November 3, 1874 – July 28, 1953) was a Canadian writer. The daughter of Mary Louisa Andrews and Stephen Randal, she was born Florence Hamilton Randal in Compton, Quebec. She was educated at the Compton L ...
*
Harriet Dunlop Prenter Harriet Irene Dunlop Prenter (1865 or 1856 – 16 July 1939) was a leader in the women's rights movement in Canada. In 1921 she was among the first group of women to run as candidates in a Canadian federal election. She was a committed socialist. ...
*
Savella Stechishin Savella Stechishin, , née Wawryniuk (August 19, 1903 – April 22, 2002), was a Ukrainian-Canadian home economist and writer, recipient of the Order of Canada. She has been described as "an ethnocultural social maternal feminist" (Ostryzniuk, 19 ...


Chile

* Sara Hübner de Fresno


Cuba

*
María Collado Romero María Collado Romero (19 March 1885 – c. 1968) was a Cuban journalist, poet, and feminist. She was the first female news reporter and parliamentary reporter in Cuba. She was the creator and president of the Democratic Suffragist Party of Cuba. ...


England

*
Ruth Adam Ruth Augusta Adam, née King (14 December 1907 – 3 February 1977), was an English journalist and writer of novels, comics and non-fiction feminist literature. Early life She was born on 14 December 1907 in Arnold, Nottinghamshire, daughter of ...
*
Frances Cairncross Dame Frances Anne Cairncross, (born 30 August 1944 in Otley, England) is a British economist, journalist and academic. She is a senior fellow at the School of Public Policy, UCLA. She formerly chaired the executive committee of the Institute f ...
*
Judith Cook Judith Cook (9 July 1933 – 12 May 2004) was an anti-nuclear campaigner, historical novelist, journalist and lecturer in theatre at the University of Exeter. She wrote several mysteries based on the casebooks of Dr Simon Forman, an Elizabethan ...
, founded an anti-nuclear organization via columns in the women's pages *
Frederick Cunliffe-Owen Frederick Philip Lewis Cunliffe-Owen, CBE (30 January 1855 - 30 June 1926) was an English-born writer and newspaper columnist. Early life He was a son of exhibition organizer and museum director Sir Philip Cunliffe-Owen (1828–1894) and his ...
*
Sarah Anne Curzon Sarah Anne Curzon née Vincent (1833 – November 6, 1898) was a British-born Canadian poet, journalist, editor, and playwright who was one of "the first women's rights activists and supporters of liberal feminism" in Canada.Kym Bird,Curzon, Sara ...
* Liz Forgan *
Winifred Fortescue Winifred Fortescue (7 February 1888 – 9 April 1951) was a British writer and actress. The wife of Sir John Fortescue, librarian and archivist at Windsor Castle and reputed British Army historian, she became formally styled Winifred, Lady Fort ...
*
Patience Gray Patience Jean Gray (31 October 1917 – 10 March 2005) was an English cookery and travel writer of the mid-20th century. Her two most popular books were ''Plats Du Jour'' (1957) – written with Primrose Boyd, about French cooking – and ''Honey Fr ...
*
Nora Heald Nora Shackleton Heald (1882 – 5 April 1961) was a British journalist, and the editor of '' The Queen'' and later, '' The Lady'', from at least as early as 1948, until 1954. Early life Nora Shackleton Heald was born in 1882, the elder daughter of ...
*
Jeannie Mole Harriet Fisher Mole (née Jones; 2 May 1841 – 15 April 1912), known as Jeannie, was a British socialist, feminist, and trade union organiser in Liverpool. Arriving there in 1879, Mole was instrumental in bringing socialism to Liverpool, as w ...
*
Constance Peel Constance Dorothy Evelyn Peel (''née'' Bayliff; 27 April 1868 – 7 August 1934) was an English journalist and writer, known for her non-fiction books on cheap household management and cookery. She wrote with the name Mrs. C. S. Peel, taking ...
*
Susanne Puddefoot Susanne Puddefoot (3 October 1934 – 13 September 2010) was an English journalist, editor and charity director. She was the first editor of the '' Times'' women's page. Biography Puddefoot was born in Blackpool to Lillian (née Frankland) and Sy ...
*
Jean Stead Jean Bourne (30 May 1926 – 2 December 2016) Early life and education Jean Bourne nee Stead was born in Huddersfield, Yorkshire, 30 May 1926. Career Stead trained as a reporter on ''The Yorkshire Post'', working as a reporter for 10 year ...
*
Dawn Langley Simmons Dawn Langley Pepita Simmons (probably 1922 – 18 September 2000) was a prolific English author and biographer. Born as Gordon Langley Hall, Simmons lived her first decades as a male. As a young adult, she became close to British actress Dame M ...
* Evelyn Sharp * Mary Stott * Jill Tweedie


Ethiopia

* Sophia Yilma


France

*
Germaine Degrond Germaine Degrond (3 June 1894 – 18 April 1991) was a French poet and politician, and a member of the French Resistance during the Second World War. Biography Céline Victorine Degrond was born at Vernouillet; her father was an engineer who ...
* Hélène Gordon-Lazareff


Ireland

* Maeve Binchy *
Mary E.L. Butler Mary E. L. Butler (1874-1920) ( ga, Máire de Buitléir) was an Irish writer and Irish-language activist. Mary Ellen Butler was the daughter of Peter Lambert Butler and the granddaughter of William Butler of Bunnahow, County Clare. She was a clos ...
*
Louisa Watson Peat Louisa Watson Peat, born Louisa Watson Small, (1883–1953) was an Irish-born writer and lecturer. Life and work Born in Keady, County Armagh, Ireland, Louisa Peat attending Queens College in Belfast, and also attended the University of London ...


New Zealand

* Eileen Duggan * Esther Glen *
Kate Isitt Kate Isitt is an English actress who is perhaps best known for her role as beauty therapist Sally Harper in the BBC television situation comedy ''Coupling''. From 1995–1998, she played Alison, a secretary in a solicitors' office, in '' Is It ...
* Alice Woodhouse


Nigeria

*
Adaora Lily Ulasi Adaora Lily Ulasi (born 1932) was a Nigerian journalist and novelist. She is said to have been the first West African woman to earn a degree in journalism. As a journalist, she has worked for the BBC and Voice of America. As a novelist she wro ...


Palestine

*
Asma Tubi Asma Tubi (1905–1983) was a Palestinian writer. Biography She was born into a Palestinian Christian family in Nazareth and was educated at the English school there. She studied Greek and then the Quran, to improve her writing skills in Arabic. ...


Philippines

* Eugenia Apostol


Poland

*
Dina Blond Dina Blond (1 March 1887 - 1985) was a prominent member of the Jewish Labour Bund in Poland and a prolific Yiddish translator. She translated over 30 works of world literature into Yiddish from German, English, and Russian. She was born Shayne- ...


Scotland

*
Dorothy-Grace Elder Dorothy-Grace Elder is a Scottish journalist and former Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the Glasgow (Scottish Parliament electoral region), Glasgow region 1999–2003. She sat as an Independent MSP 2002–2003, having first sat as a ...
*
Evelyn Irons Evelyn Graham Irons (17 June 1900 – 3 April 2000) was a Scottish journalist, the first female war correspondent to be decorated with the French Croix de Guerre. Early life Irons was born in Govan, Glasgow to Joseph Jones Irons, a stockbroker, ...


Sri Lanka

* Vijita Fernando


Ukraine

*
Savella Stechishin Savella Stechishin, , née Wawryniuk (August 19, 1903 – April 22, 2002), was a Ukrainian-Canadian home economist and writer, recipient of the Order of Canada. She has been described as "an ethnocultural social maternal feminist" (Ostryzniuk, 19 ...


United States

* Emilie Frances Bauer *
Nikki Beare Nikki Beare (March 7, 1928– November 10, 2014) was an American feminist, journalist, and lobbyist who served as president of Florida's National Organization for Women (NOW) chapter. Beare began working as a journalist for ''The Miami News'' b ...
*
Marion Howard Brazier Marion Howard Brazier ( pen name, Marion Howard; September 6, 1850 – January 15, 1935) was an American journalist, editor, author, and clubwoman of Boston. She was the author of: ''Perpetrations, a Book of Humor'', and ''Cheer, Philosophy and ...
*
Nell Brinkley Nell Brinkley (September 5, 1886 – October 21, 1944) was an American illustrator and comic artist who was sometimes referred to as the "Queen of Comics" during her nearly four-decade career working with New York newspapers and magazines. Sh ...
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Caro Crawford Brown Caro Crawford Brown (May 25, 1908 – August 5, 2001) was a Pulitzer Prize-winning American journalist. Biography Caro Crawford was born in Baber, Angelina County, Texas in 1908. Her family moved to Beaumont when she was 15, and she studied journ ...
*
Louise Bryant Louise Bryant (December 5, 1885 – January 6, 1936) was an American feminist, political activist, and journalist best known for her sympathetic coverage of Russia and the Bolsheviks during the October Revolution, Russian Revolution of Novembe ...
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Fanny Butcher Fanny Butcher ( Fanny Amanda Butcher; September 13, 1888 – May 11, 1987) was a long time writer and literary critic for the ''Chicago Tribune'' newspaper. Personal life Butcher was born on September 13, 1888, in Fredonia, Kansas, to Levi Oliv ...
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Vivian Castleberry Vivian Anderson Castleberry (April 8, 1922 – October 4, 2017) was an American newspaper editor, journalist, and women's rights activist, who was elected to the Texas Women's Hall of Fame in 1984. Early life She was raised in East Texas and enter ...
* Craig Claiborne, food critic whose columns first appeared in the ''New York Times women's pages *
Charlotte Reeve Conover Charlotte Reeve Conover (June 14, 1855 – September 23, 1940) was an American author, lecturer, political activist, educator, and "Dayton's historian". Early life and education Conover was born to physician Dr. John Charles and Emma Barlow Re ...
* Dorothy Dix *
Robin Chandler Duke Robin Chandler Duke (born Grace Esther Tippett; October 13, 1923 – February 6, 2016) was an American women's reproductive rights advocate and diplomat. She was the United States Ambassador to Norway from 2000 to 2001. Early life Born Grace Est ...
* India Edwards * George Elliston *
Gloria Emerson Gloria Emerson (May 19, 1929 – August 3, 2004) was an American author, journalist and ''New York Times'' war correspondent. Emerson received the 1978 National Book Award in Contemporary Thought for ''Winners and Losers'', her book about the V ...
*
Martha R. Field Martha R Field Martha Reinhard Smallwood Field (May 24, 1854 – December 19, 1898), known as Mattie Field, was an American journalist. She usually wrote under the pen name Catherine Cole or Catharine Cole. She was one of the earliest professional ...
* Doris Fleischman *
Mary Nogueras Frampton Mary Nogueras Frampton (1930–2006) was one of the first female photographers employed by the ''Los Angeles Times''. She was organizer of the Save Our Coast environmental organization. Biography Mary Nogueras was born in New York City in 1930 and ...
, ''Los Angeles Times'' *
Mary Garber Mary Ellen Garber (April 16, 1916 – September 21, 2008) was an American Sports journalism, sportswriter, who was a pioneer among Women in journalism and media professions, women sportswriters. She received over 40 writing awards and numerous ho ...
*
Charlotte Giesen Charlotte Milton Caldwell Giesen (January 27, 1907 – January 28, 1995) (nicknamed "Pinkie") was a Virginia politician and news editor. A lifelong resident of Radford, Virginia, she served in the Virginia House of Delegates from 1958 to 1961, be ...
* Anna Roosevelt Halsted * Marguerite Harrison *
Marj Heyduck Marj ( ar, المرج, Al Marǧ, The Meadows), also spelt ''El Merj'', generally believed to be on the site of the ancient city of Barca or Barce, is a city in northeastern Libya and the administrative seat of the Marj District. It lies in an ...
*
Primrose Rupp Hinton Syrene Louise Primrose "Prim" Rupp Hinton (December 25, 1889 - May 9, 1969) was an American journalist. She was the society editor for the Aberdeen Daily World. Early life Syrene Louise Primrose "Prim" Rupp Hinton was born on December 25, 1889, ...
*
Ruth Langdon Inglis Ruth Langdon Inglis (December 17, 1927 – December 15, 2005) was a journalist and author. She is known for her books about child-rearing. Early life Ruth Filer Langdon was born in Mukden, Manchuria, to William Russell Langdon, an United States ...
*
Jane Jacobs Jane Jacobs (''née'' Butzner; 4 May 1916 – 25 April 2006) was an American-Canadian journalist, author, theorist, and activist who influenced urban studies, sociology, and economics. Her book '' The Death and Life of Great American Cities ...
*
Selma James Selma James (born Selma Deitch; formerly Weinstein; August 15, 1930) is an American writer, and feminist and social activist who is co-author of the women's movement book ''The Power of Women and the Subversion of the Community'' (with Mariarosa ...
* Elizabeth Jordan * Sophie Kerr * Gerri Major * Marie Manning, created the first advice column *
Louise Markscheffel Louise Markscheffel (, Weber; 1857–1911) was an American literary and Society reporting, society editor of the long nineteenth century, as well as dramatic, musical and literary critic. Beginning in 1887, she served as society editor of the Tol ...
* Marguerite Martyn, reporter and artist, ''St. Louis Post-Dispatch'' *
Mary Margaret McBride Mary Margaret McBride (November 16, 1899 – April 7, 1976) was an American radio interview host and writer. Her popular radio shows spanned more than 40 years. In the 1940s the daily audience for her housewife-oriented program numbered from si ...
*
Miriam Michelson Miriam Michelson (1870–1942) was an American journalist and writer. Biography Miriam Michelson was born in the mining town Murphy's Camp in Calaveras, California, in 1870. She was the seventh of eight children of Samuel and Rosalie (''née'' P ...
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Maury Henry Biddle Paul Maury Henry Biddle Paul (April 14, 1890 – July 17, 1942) was an American journalist who became famous as a society columnist for the ''New York American'' (which became the ''New York Journal-American'' when it merged with the ''New York Eve ...
, coined the term
Café Society Café society was the description of the "Beautiful People" and "Bright Young Things" who gathered in fashionable cafés and restaurants in New York, Paris and London beginning in the late 19th century. Maury Henry Biddle Paul is credited with ...
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Louisa Watson Peat Louisa Watson Peat, born Louisa Watson Small, (1883–1953) was an Irish-born writer and lecturer. Life and work Born in Keady, County Armagh, Ireland, Louisa Peat attending Queens College in Belfast, and also attended the University of London ...
* Pearl Rivers * Jane Roberts * Martha Root *
Gail Sheehy Gail Sheehy (born Gail Henion; November 27, 1936 – August 24, 2020) was an American author, journalist, and lecturer. She was the author of seventeen books and numerous high-profile articles for magazines such as ''New York'' and ''Vanity ...
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Rebecca Stiles Taylor Rebecca Stiles Taylor (August 1879 – December 1958) was a journalist, social worker, and educator from Savannah, Georgia. She was best known for her contributions to the community as the founder of several charitable outlets in the area and as an ...
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Lillian Beynon Thomas Lillian Beynon Thomas (4 September 1876 – 2 September 1961) was a Canadian journalist and feminist. Life Lillian Beynon was born on 4 September 1876 Birth Certificate in Streetsville, Ontario. Her parents were James Barnes and Rebecca Beynon, ...
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Antoinette Kensel Thurgood Antoinette Kensel Thurgood (?–?) was an American Philanthropy, philanthropist, Christians, Christian women's community organizer, and newspaper editor. She was the founder of the Women's Conference of the Churches of Christ in Victoria (Australia) ...
* Nina Totenberg * Ralph Waldo Tyler * Ina Eloise Young


Influential editors

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Marie Anderson Marie Willard Anderson (April 19, 1916 – July 2, 1996) was a Miami, Florida newspaper editor. Under her leadership in the 1960s the ''Miami Herald'' Women's Page transformed into a nationally recognized progressive women's section, one of the fi ...
* Eugenia Apostol * Eileen Ascroft * Ben Bradlee *
Ernestine Carter Ernestine Marie Carter OBE (née Fantl; 10 October 1906 – 1 August 1983) was an American-born British museum curator, journalist, and fashion writer. She became hugely influential in her roles as women's editor, and later associate editor of ' ...
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Vivian Castleberry Vivian Anderson Castleberry (April 8, 1922 – October 4, 2017) was an American newspaper editor, journalist, and women's rights activist, who was elected to the Texas Women's Hall of Fame in 1984. Early life She was raised in East Texas and enter ...
* Nancy Dexter *
Colleen Dishon Colleen Dishon, also known as Koky Dishon (12 June 1924 – 28 December 2004), was an American journalist for the ''Chicago Tribune'' in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Dishon was the first woman listed in the ''Chicago Tribune'' masthead and, at ...
* Prudence Glynn *
Dorothy Jurney Dorothy Misener Jurney (May 8, 1909 – June 19, 2002) was an American journalist. As women's page editor for the ''Miami Herald'', she shifted the focus of those pages from the "Four F's – family, food, fashion, and furnishings" – to ...
, the "godmother of women's pages." *
Marjorie Paxson Marjorie Paxson (August 13, 1923 – June 17, 2017) was an American newspaper journalist, editor, and publisher during an era in American history when the women's liberation movement was setting milestones by tackling the barriers of discriminat ...


See also

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Women in journalism Women in journalism are individuals who participate in journalism. As journalism became a profession, women were restricted by custom from access to journalism occupations, and faced significant discrimination within the profession. Neverthe ...


References

{{reflist History of journalism Women's history Women journalists