News Archive

June 29, 2010

Shattering Stereotypes Worldwide: Geena Davis Speaks to the UN about Children’s Programming

At our 30th anniversary celebration in November, Academy Award winner Geena Davis shared feedback from fans moved by her portrayals of powerful women who defy stereotypes. Now 18 years since the release of A League of Their Own and teenage girls still approach Geena inspired by the hit movie: “I play sports because of that movie. I love that movie – I’ve watched it 100 times.” Read More…

June 29, 2010

Geena Davis speaks about gender equality at U.N. ECOSOC session

On June 28, Geena Davis presented key policy outcomes from the U.N. Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) Special Event on Engaging Philanthropy to Promote Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (Fast Forward to 1:29). Watch Online…

June 10, 2010

Geena Davis: How the Media’s Gender Bias Hurts our Children

I’ve had a sneaking suspicion for some time now that many of the G-rated cartoons and movies that my daughter watches aren’t entirely good for her. Although we enjoyed watching Disney’s Tinkerbell the other night, both my husband and I thought that the popular fairy was entirely too sexualized. I also find Disney Chanel’s Phineas and Ferb funny and clever and yet the show strongly embraces gender stereotypes. Phineas and Ferb are the boy geniuses (dreaming up fabulous inventions) while the girls are either boy crazy or servantile (in this case a troop of Fireside Girls who assist the boy wonders on call). Read More…

June 07, 2010

Geena Davis Uses Her Celebrity Power to Help Improve the Gender Disparity in Film and TV for Kids

Monday night I had the opportunity to see Geena Davis in conversation with Pat Mitchell at the Paley Center for Media in NYC. They talked through her career but spent the bulk of the time talking about the work she is doing now at the Geena Davis Institute on Gender and Media which is an organization that does research on gender disparities in media for children. She then takes the research and meets with studios and networks and presents them with the facts in hopes that this will address the disparity. Read More…

May 12, 2010

Geena Davis touts gender equality in kids media at PBWC Conference

On May 11, Geena Davis was a keynote speaker at the Professional BusinessWomen of California 2010 Conference. Watch Online…

May 11, 2010

Geena Davis: “Looney Toons has 11 characters. The only female character is Granny.”

Ever since I went to see Geena Davis (and freaked out a little) at the Paley Institute, I’ve gotten a somewhat nerdy in my admiration of her. Since founding the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media, Davis has been outspoken in her support of stronger, and more frequent, female characters in entertainment – particularly in children’s programming. The research of the Institute has uncovered the dire reality of gender in film and television, including the fact that the amount of sexually revealing clothing on female characters in G-rated films is equal to those in R-rated movies, and that the ratio of male to female movie characters (3 to 1) hasn’t budged since the 1940’s. Read More…

May 08, 2010

Geena Davis touts gender equality in kids media

From “Thelma & Louise” to “Commander in Chief,” actress Geena Davis has embodied iconic – and iconoclastic – female characters. Davis, whose resume includes an Academy Award, Mensa membership, Swedish fluency and Olympic-level archery prowess, is among the keynoters scheduled for Tuesday’s Professional BusinessWomen of California conference, taking place at Moscone Center in San Francisco. Read More…

April 28, 2010

Geena Davis: When gender equality is no longer a fairy tale

Five years ago, while watching children’s entertainment with my then 2-year old daughter, I was stunned to see that there were far more male characters than female characters in this media aimed at the youngest of children. Media images are a powerful force in shaping our perception of men and women. The stark gender inequality in media aimed at little children is significant, as television and movies wield enormous influence on them as they develop a sense of their role in the world. And because young kids tend to watch the same TV shows and movies repeatedly, negative stereotypes get imprinted again and again. Read More…

April 26, 2010

What We See When We See Ourselves Onscreen: Geena Davis

After Women’s History month in March, and having attended so many women’s events, I find myself reflecting on “the tipping point.” In many ways, we are at its cusp, with people of both genders recognizing that the empowerment of women and girls is the critical component for social, economic and political development. Yet, in other ways we are not even close. On April 5 at the Paley Center for Media, I joined other NYWICI members to hear the Center’s President and CEO, Pat Mitchell, speak with Academy Award-winning Actor Geena Davis about her effort to change the way media represent women and girls. Read More…

April 17, 2010

Long road trip to equality, says Davis

THE on-screen Geena Davis is a woman of action – feisty reporter (The Fly, Hero), baseballer (A League of Their Own), road warrior (Thelma and Louise), pirate (Cutthroat Island), spy (The Long Kiss Goodnight). Off-screen, she moves at a more genteel pace but still gets the job done.
Davis – in Melbourne yesterday to promote the Australian-made feature Accidents Happen, her first big-screen outing since 2002 – made one of her first visits here after taking up archery almost on a whim. Read More…

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