Earlier today, we took note of the lack of women-type people on the masthead of Good magazine. But one reader thought we were barking up the wrong tree. His name is Alexander Hamilton. His letter, in all of its white male privilege-defending glory, confusing politics and sometimes demonstrable untruthfulness, follows.
I find it disconcerting that you choose to target the well meaning group of idealists at GOOD Magazine for your criticism for the supposed lack of male vs. female "diversity" in their ranks. Indeed, it has been my experience that small Gen-Y led media companies (as a whole) tend to be be much better at fostering an environment of true diversity, ie, black, white, yellow, male, female, gay, straight, etc. So if, out of 20 odd employees, one finds a slight slant towards more men or more women or more asians or whatever, so be it, if their overall intentions are noble (which they are). Your real target should be the large consumer publishers who truly lack diversity in their ranks. Go thru the masthead of most major consumer magazines (say the top 200 titles) and you will find most of the staff is women (80%+). This includes the top positions such as Publisher, Editor, Managing Editor, Ad Director, Mkg Director and the top sales people. It is also an industry lacking in many people age 50+. In addition, try and find black employees in these companies outside of the mailroom. So, the magazine industry discriminates against men, older people and black people. Meanwhile, the content for many of these rags promotes anorexia, vanity, materialism and our cultural obsession with celebrities. All of this on non-recycled paper (unlike GOOD Magazine), so it's an industry that's bad for the environment too. And while I'm at it- the industry is subsidized by the govmt. in the form of artificially low postal rates secured by scandalous lobbyists. To target some young, well-intentioned idealists, at a magazine with a skeletal staff is a waste of your time and reinforces out of date stereotypes and misconceptions. Yes, it's easy to pick on a rich guy. But the truth is, there are plenty of real magazines out there that don't find a spot on their staff for older people, men and blacks, also owned by rich people who inherited their money. Your story is off the mark.... Best Regards, Alexander Hamilton