Alex Cooper and Barbara Walters documentary show the struggle for women in the media
– On top. Two new documentaries aired at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York last week. Barbara Walters: Tell me everything and Call her Alexa two-part documentary about podcaster Alex Cooper is currently streaming on Hulu. Both showed what it takes to reach the top of a male-dominated media business in two very different times.
Tell me everything It traces the story of Barbara Walters, the first woman to co-anchor a nighttime news program in the US that debuted in that role on ABC in 1976 and smashed the most difficult glass ceiling in journalism and television. The film by director Jackie Jesco continues to break down barriers Walters has, from her famous celebrity sitdown interview to her later reinvention Viewalong with her personal struggle. While she got married, divorced and had children, her private life often suffered, the documentary observes. “Her job was the love of her life,” one story tells the camera.
“She was an incredibly ambitious woman who loved the film, loved being on television, loved the thrill of chase, and loved the competition,” Jesco says. “She got a lot of joy from it. And it doesn’t have to be a huge personal life that always brings someone’s joy.” Jane Rosenthal, co-founder and CEO of the company behind Tribeca Film Festival, said, “We grew up with her. You didn’t realize that she really does as a woman, that she is the only woman in the room and that it’s kind of a fight she has to have.”
Yet, women who define other eras in media, including Oprah Winfrey and Katie Courick, reflect in their documentaries about how Walters’ path influenced their choices. Courick says that after seeing Walters, he knew he didn’t want to sacrifice her family life for his career.
We’ll take us to the next Tribeca documentary. Alex Cooper, host Call her dad And the media moguls behind the whimsical network are often millennials or Oprah’s gene. in Tell me everything, Winfrey remembers watching Walters to learn how to succeed as an on-air journalist. Without Barbara, Oprah wouldn’t be there. And without Oprah, there wouldn’t be Alex.
Coopers have been built Call her dad Within Barstool Sports, another media company that is dominated by overwhelmingly males. Her new documentary traces her upbringing and experiences Sexual harassment at university She says she now motivated her not to be silent again, and the rise of her podcast.
Decades after Walters’ career, Cooper doesn’t need to make the same trade-offs as Walters. Her husband is her business partner. Walters struggled with personal anxiety about her appearance. Tell me everythingCooper shares her most personal experiences and challenges with her audience. “She not only built an audience, she built a movement,” Rosenthal said during the introduction. Call her Alex. Rather than being seen on someone else’s platform, like a TV network, Kupper could build it himself.
Despite all these obvious differences, watching the film in a row is clear that Cooper and Walters have a lot in common. “I’m a competitive mother******,” Cooper says. “I’m having a hard time with myself.”
As much as the media industry has changed, it’s not the drive needed to reach the top.
Emma Hinchliff
Emma.Hinchliffe@Fortune.com
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Mover and shaker
Ametros has been appointed to help people after a medical claim settlement Andrea Mills As Executive Managing Director of Webster Bank and President of Ametros. More recently, Mills was Ametros’ chief customer officer.
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IPG Mediabrands has been appointed Stacey Deliso As the brand president of the initiative. She recently served as the US CEO of the initiative.
With my radar
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“More babies and beef tallow, blue hair and fewer birth control” cut
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Words of farewell
“You need to look under the surface using your intuition and your magic.”
– singer Curious