Caryl Rivers, Author at Women's eNews

Data on Scientists Hushes Media Echo Chamber

By Rosalind C. Barnett & Caryl Rivers ● Commentary ● October 3, 2007

A conference on women and science earlier this week caught our commentators by surprise. Despite a media soundtrack saying “Larry Summers was right,” they found a sophisticated discussion that helped dispel ideas of male intellectual superiority.

Spirited Play Is Good for Boys and (Yes!) Girls

By Caryl Rivers ● Commentary ● August 8, 2007

Authors of a bestselling book argue that boys need more freedom to take physical risks and test their spirit of adventure. Caryl Rivers says bravo to that, as long as girls join in the play too.

Shock Jocks Wield Dangerous ‘Stereotype Threat’

By Caryl Rivers ● Arts & Culture ● April 16, 2007

Don Imus may be just a shock jock. But Caryl Rivers says stereotypes are like little microbes that enter our pores, get under our skin and hinder the abilities of actual individuals. That’s why his mocking of female college basketball players mattered.

U.S. Women May See Independence in Singlehood

By Caryl Rivers & Rosalind C. Barnett ● Commentary ● January 31, 2007

Recent headlines have noted the growing singlehood of U.S. women, and the stories haven’t all been celebratory. But Caryl Rivers and Rosalind Barnett say that single women no longer have the cards stacked against them and their status is sticking.

Stone Age Had Rocks, Not June-and-Ward Cleavers

By Caryl Rivers ● Arts & Culture ● December 13, 2006

Anthropologists who suggest early humans survived by dint of separate gender roles are grabbing headlines. Caryl Rivers says it shows the media’s fondness for evidence–however dubious–of the species being hardwired for male dominance.

Female High-Fliers Rack Up ‘Let-Down’ Awards

By Caryl Rivers ● Commentary ● October 4, 2006

Women who make their way through the cracks in the glass ceiling have an obligation to do the rest of us proud. But Caryl Rivers says Jeanine Pirro, Patricia Dunn and Ann Baskins provide a lesson in gender equality when it comes to fallibility.

Career Women Bad Wives? Let’s Ask the Guys

By Rosalind C. Barnett & Caryl Rivers ● Commentary ● August 30, 2006

Female bloggers just stood up to Forbes.com, the latest media outlet to say career women make bad wives. Caryl Rivers and Rosalind Barnett review the episode and vow to keep up their own battle against a pernicious media myth.

Newsweek’s Apology Comes 20 Years Too Late

By Caryl Rivers ● Commentary ● June 14, 2006

Newsweek has issued a grand correction: Contrary to a cover story 20 years ago, single women over 40 actually do marry. Caryl Rivers says the article was clearly wrong at the time and fed media gospel about the woes of ambitious women.

Women Happier as Homemakers? Time to Recheck Data

By Rosalind C. Barnett & Caryl Rivers ● Commentary ● March 22, 2006

A recent study bandied about in the news media finds women are more happily married when their husbands win the bread. The finding is so different from related research that our commentators call it an “outlier” not to be trusted.

‘Boy Crisis’ in Education Is Nothing But Hype

By Rosalind C. Barnett & Caryl Rivers ● Commentary ● March 15, 2006

A “boy crisis” is boiling up in media coverage of education, based on the perception that girls are outstripping boys academically. Today’s commentators argue that the discussion should be about social demographics, not gender.

Caryl Rivers

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