It’s not always easy being a woman in this industry and speaking to B&T, Australian news reader and journalist, founder of Spicercommunications and the keynote speaker of our Women in Media Awards, Tracey Spicer, said it’s not uncommon for companies to “forget” about women.
“We’re going through a period of fragmentation and a lot of bosses are putting gender equality to the bottom of their to-do list,” Spicer said.
“CEOs are scrambling to find ways to monetise their websites, their television companies, their radio networks, and it’s common to forget about women.
“We’re still left behind and women are still sexually harassed in the workplace. It’s crucial for this issue to be taken seriously.”
“It’s important for women in the industry to support each other,” Spicer added. “We have so many challenges to face.”
“I’m really proud to say, as of last month, Women in Media is a truly national organisation, and I’m the convener of it.
“Our patron is Caroline Jones, and we plan to approach media organisations with suggestions about what to do to assist women in their workforce. Research shows it’s of huge benefit to the bottom line.
“We focus on networking, mentoring and encouraging women in what’s still an incredibly male dominated industry.
But, as Spicer said, change never comes in a “linear fashion”, and there’s always going to be obstacles to achieving true equality.
“We have advances and then we have backlash,” she explained. “At the moment we’re going through a bit of a backlash from companies who fail to see why the gender equality issue is an important one.
“But I am optimistic about where we’re headed in the long term.
“The Women in Media awards are crucially important. It’s very easy to get discouraged in the industry. Most of my friends from the beginning of my career have gone into different industries or gone part time simply because they became too frustrated with how things were.
“By giving women this kind of encouragement, it means more women will stay for the full breadth of their career.”
Asked about some of the women in the industry she admires, Spicer added, “Any sports journalists who are women – and there’s a huge proportion of them – I take my hat off to; any women working in traditionally masculine areas of the industry.”
The B&T Women in Media Awards, as well as the inaugural daytime forum, are being held at Randwick Racecourse in Sydney on August 19, with tickets available here. If you’re yet to get your entries in, click this little link here. 
