I think BlogHer sounded amazing and fun and interesting and I was totes jealous of my friends that got to go, but… I wonder if we’re doing ourselves a bit of a disservice with things like hanging “You Are Perfect” notes on stalls at a women’s-oriented conference.

I think it takes away from what the conference is–a meeting of hundreds of incredibly influential women–and makes it all the more difficult to be taken seriously. But, that’s just my two cents. I’ve never been a “Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus” kind of feminist.

I’ll check that out. Maybe I’ll call in!

Short answer: yes.

Long answer: Yes, but it’s not because there aren’t good women available. I think TV producers orient coverage to appeal to the sports fan who is most likely to buy advertisers’ products, and that is the stereotypical beer-drinking dumb ass.

So the men do the analysis and the women provide the eye-candy. It’s a classic case of a marketplace decision that results in a lower quality product that sells better than a high quality product.

If you want to see the eye candy situation taken to a truly absurd level, watch Jillian Reynolds on FOX NFL Sunday. Her job is to dress, talk and behave like a total bimbo. Trust me, it will make you sick.

Something beavis and butthead-ish, but I’d probably get banned from commenting here thereafter

I can only say this: for me, content is king, and it really does not matter to me which set of reproductive organs you have….and frankly, especially when the talk is of food, I’d rather not hear about them (as I did in another rlocal food blog in the very recent past)

Good writing is good writing.

Good content is good content.

Topical aside: I know of at LEAST two female bloggers who parlayed their blog fame into a real paying job – restaurant girl and the girl who ate everything, both in NYC.

I think Kari’s point that women can be successful but often things are asked/assumed/etc. of or about women that are never asked/assumed/etc. of or about men. That bothers me.

Are women not taken seriously as sportswriters because there’s a history of them being simply “eye candy” and not serious reporters? This is a real question: I know next to nothing about sports reporting (which is so stereotypical, isn’t it?).

I think quality is what matters. It may not get noticed right away but eventually quality cannot be ignored.

I think it’s a mistake to generalize based on a few examples. There are many more examples of women succeeding in traditionally male areas. Blogwise, consider Wonkette, Huffington Post, Michelle Malkin, and Majikthise to name a few.

What about business writer (and Pulitzer winner) Gretchen Morgensen? How about Nina Totenberg? The staff of PBS’s NewsHour? CNBC World has several business themed shows staffed by women. These are traditionally male areas but these women excel in their jobs and are taken seriously.

And let’s be honest: some blogs are just bad. Some female writers are bad. Some female politicians are bad. It’s not sexist to say it. I know one female blogger who rejected all criticism of Hillary Clinton as sexist.

One area where women are not taken as seriously is sports reporting. Buy it cannot be denied that they are commonplace as sports reporters. The truth is most of them are awful and everyone knows it. But the good ones ARE taken seriously because they’re good. Mary Carillo (tennis) is a good example.

That’s my opinion but I’m a guy so nobody probably cares what I think which makes me want to cry like a girl.

Did you have the opportunity to speak with Liz Wu at the bloggers convention? She wrote the article for Soapbox.