women director statistics 2001-2002

>>Boxed In: Women On Screen and Behind the Scenes
in the 2001-2002 Prime-time Season
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
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Boxed In:
Women On Screen and Behind the Scenes
in the 2001-2002 Prime-time Season

Martha M. Lauzen, Ph.D., School of Communication, San Diego State University,
San Diego, CA 92182, 619.594.6301

Copyright © 2002 -- All rights reserved.
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Men wrote and created approximately 8 out of 10 situation comedies and dramas airing on the broadcast networks in the 2001-02 prime-time season.

Overall, women comprised 23% of all creators, executive producers, producers, directors, writers, editors, and directors of photography last season. This percentage has remained virtually unchanged for the last three seasons. However, the representation of women writers declined dramatically last season, dipping from 27% in 2000-01 to 19% in 2001-02.

Using one randomly selected episode of every prime-time drama and situation comedy airing on the six networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, UPN, WB), this study reports employment figures for women working on screen and behind the scenes in the 2001-2002 season. The following summary also offers historical comparisons of last season with similar percentages dating back to 1997-98. By counting the numbers of female and male characters and women and men working in the behind-the-scenes roles listed above, this study provides an accurate and timely look at women’s representation in prime-time television.

>>FIGURE 1 Historical Comparison of Percentages of Female and Male Characters
>>FIGURE 2 Percent of Behind-the-Scenes Women in the 2000-2001 Season
>>FIGURE 3 Historical Comparison of Percentages of Behind-the-Scenes Women Employed in Prime Time

Findings/On-Screen Representation of Women

This study examined 1,537 characters appearing on 101 situation comedies and dramas.
Seventy-five percent (75%) of the programs considered underrepresent female characters.
Females accounted for 40% and males 60% of all characters (see Figure 1). This represents an increase of two percentage points from the 2000-01 season but is even with women’s representation in the 1999-2000 season. Similarly, females comprised 40% and males 60% of major characters.
Female characters were slightly more likely to appear on situation comedies (41%) than dramas (40%).
Viewers were most likely to see female characters on WB programs where girls/women accounted for 46% of characters and least likely to see them on Fox programs where girls/women represented 37% of all characters.
Overall, female characters were younger than their male counterparts. Seventy percent (70%) of all characters in their 40s and 72% of all characters in their 50s were male. The majority (58%) of female characters were in their 20s and 30s while the majority (54%) of male characters were in their 30s and 40s. The percentage of female characters plummets as they move from their 30s (35%) into their 40s (14%).
Female characters were overwhelmingly white (74%), followed by African-Americans (16%), Hispanics (4%), other-worldly characters such as demons and extra-terrestrials (4%), and Asians (2%). Viewers were just as likely to see a female Hispanic as a female other-worldly character. Viewers were more likely to see an other-worldly female than they were a female Asian character.
Female characters were significantly more likely to be identified by their marital status, while men were more likely to be identified by their occupational status. Twenty-eight percent (28%) of male’s marital status could not be identified, while 20% of female characters had an unknown marital status. Twenty-nine percent (29%) of female’s occupational status could not be identified, while 20% of male characters had an unknown occupation.
Female characters were more likely than males to hold professional positions (22% female vs. 20% male), service positions (16% female vs. 11% male), or be identified in out-of-workforce positions such as homemaker (8% female vs. 4% male). Male characters were more likely than females to hold white collar positions (25% male vs. 12% female) and skilled or trade positions (7% male vs. 4% female). Females were just as likely as males to be retired (2% female vs. 2% male) or be the owner of a business (2% female vs. 2% male).
Ninety-eight percent (98%) of all prime-time characters were heterosexual, 2% were gay or bisexual. Twenty (20) male characters and 9 female characters were gay or bisexual.

Findings/Behind-the-Scenes Representation of Women

This study examined 1,778 individuals working behind-the-scenes on one randomly selected episode of every prime-time drama and situation comedy airing on the six networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, UPN, WB) in the 2001-02 season.
Overall, women comprised 23% of all creators, executive producers, producers, directors, writers, editors, and directors of photography working on the programs considered (see Figure 2). This figure represents a decrease of one percentage point from the 2000-01 season when women accounted for 24% of those working behind the scenes.
By role, the percentages of women creators and editors increased, while the percentages of women executive producers and directors of photography remained stable. The percentages of women producers, writers, and directors decreased (see Figure 3). For the fifth year in a row, there wasn’t a single female director of photography working on any of the programs considered.
The percentages of women writers and directors dropped dramatically in the 2001-02 season. The percentage of women writers decreased from 27% in the 2000-01 season to 19% in the 2001-02 season. The percentage of women directors declined from 12% in the 2000-01 season to 8% in the 2001-02 season.
Programs with women executive producers and creators employed significantly greater percentages of women than programs with males in these roles. Women held 12% of the behind-the-scenes roles considered on programs with no female executive producers. However, women held 23% of the behind-the-scenes roles on programs with at least one female executive producer. Women held 15% of behind-the-scenes roles on programs with no female creators. However, women held 29% of behind-the-scenes roles on programs with at least one female creator.
On the programs analyzed, women fared best as producers (32%), followed by executive producers (22%), creators (21%), editors (20%), writers (19%), directors (8%), and directors of photography (0%).
Behind-the-scenes women were slightly more likely to work on dramas (25%) than situation comedies (22%). By role, women producers, writers and editors were more likely to work on dramas, while women creators and executive producers were more likely to work on situation comedies. Women were just as likely to direct situation comedies as dramas.
Programs airing on ABC and CBS employed the highest percentage of behind-the-scenes women (26%), followed by WB (25%), NBC (23%), UPN (22%), and Fox (17%).
Women comprised 21% of creators. Seventy-three percent (73%) of the programs considered had no female creators.
Women accounted for 22% of executive producers. Thirty-seven percent (37%) of the programs considered had no female executive producers.
Women comprised 32% of producers. Ten percent (10%) of the programs considered had no female producers.
Women accounted for 8% of directors. Ninety-two percent (92%) of the programs considered had no female directors.
Women comprised 19% of writers. Seventy-five percent (75%) of the programs considered had no female writers.
Women accounted for 20% of editors. Eighty percent (80%) of the programs considered had no female editors.
Women comprised 0% of directors of photography. One hundred percent (100%) of the programs considered had no female directors of photography.

Findings/Relationship Between Women On Screen and Women Behind the Scenes

Women working behind the scenes substantially influenced the number of on-screen women. When a program had no female creators, women accounted for 37% of all characters. However, when a program employed at least one female creator, women comprised 50% of all characters.
Programs with no women executive producers featured casts that were 37% female. Programs with at least one woman executive producer featured casts that were 43% female.

>>Figure 1.
Comparison of Percentage of Women Employed in Top 100 and Top 250 Films of 2001

NOTE: The sampling strategy for the last three seasons (2001-02, 2000-01, 1999-00) differed slightly from that used in the first three seasons (1998-99, 1997-98, 1995-96). The figures for the last three seasons reflect a sample including one randomly chosen episode of every situation comedy and drama aired on the six broadcast networks. The figures for the first three seasons reflect samples including one randomly chosen episode of every situation comedy, drama, and animated series ranking among the top 100 programs in their respective seasons.

>>Figure 2.
Historical Comparison of Percentage of Women Employed Behind the Scenes on Top 250 Films

>>Figure 3.
Historical Comparison of Percentage of Women Employed Behind the Scenes on Top 100 Films

NOTE: The sampling strategy for the last three seasons (2001-02, 2000-01, 1999-00) differed slightly from that used in the first two seasons (1998-99, 1997-98). The figures for the last three seasons reflect a sample including one randomly chosen episode of every situation comedy and drama aired on the six broadcast networks. The figures for the first three seasons reflect samples including one randomly chosen episode of every situation comedy, drama, and animated series ranking among the top 100 programs in their respective seasons.

>>--Information given by Martha M. Lauzen, Ph.D.
Professor, School of Communication, San Diego State University.

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