• Home
  • News
  • Fortune 500
  • Tech
  • Finance
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
Broadsheet

The Broadsheet: January 16th

By
Caroline Fairchild
Caroline Fairchild
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Caroline Fairchild
Caroline Fairchild
Down Arrow Button Icon
January 16, 2015, 7:41 AM ET

Good morning, Broadsheet readers. The Oscar nominations have started quite the stir about both gender and race, and a newly-elected woman will deliver the GOP response to President Obama’s State of the Union address next week. Read on to learn how many Fortune 500 companies have all-male boards. Enjoy the long weekend and I’ll see you back here on Tuesday.

EVERYONE'S TALKING

•Selma director snubbed. The African-American director of Selma, Ava DuVernay, was not nominated for an Academy Award despite wide speculation that she would be—nor was David Oyelowo, who played Martin Luther King Jr., nominated for Best Actor. While Selma got a Best Picture nod, no black actors were nominated in any major category this year. No women were nominated for Best Director or Best Original Screenplay either. Still, Academy president Cheryl Boone, the first black woman in that role, said that the Oscars don't have a diversity problem  'at all.'Bloomberg

ALSO IN THE HEADLINES

•Taking on Obama. Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA), the first woman elected to the office from Iowa, will deliver the GOP response to President Obama's State of the Union address on Tuesday. Ernst said she was "truly honored and humbled" by the responsibility, adding that "it's a long way from Red Oak [Iowa] to Washington, D.C." The Atlantic

•Men for women's rights. On Wednesday, Iceland organized a conference at the United Nations for men interested in advocating for women's rights around the world. "There is a need to engage men more," said Iceland's Ambassador Greta Gunnarsdottir. "The point is not to exclude women, but to include men." AFP

•Moving fast. Despite the firestorm that rained down on Sony co-chairman Amy Pascal after hackers made her entire inbox public, the executive moved quickly to mend any relationships that were put in jeopardy. "I have no doubt some people were upset, but I think the relationships are so strong that they can be repaired. We don’t think we will have lost any business," Michael Lynton, Sony Entertainment's CEO, told Businessweek. Businessweek

•5 out of 10. Although women make up just 17.4% of Fortune 500 CIOs, half the CIOs in the top 10 companies in the Fortune 500 are women, according to a new report. Wal-Mart, Exxon, Ford, General Electric and Valero Energy all have female CIOs. WSJ

•MOVERS AND SHAKERS: Liza Landsman, chief marketing officer at E-Trade, is leaving the company in February. Meredith Long, TIME's executive director of the West Coast, will take over as the magazine's publisher.

THE BROADVIEW

The 23 Fortune 500 companies with all-male boards

It's 2015, and nearly 5% of Fortune 500 companies are still run by all-male boards of directors.

That's the finding of a recent Fortune analysis in collaboration with S&P Capital IQ.

But here's the encouraging news: The number of Fortune 500 companies with no female directors is down by 54%from 2013, when researchers at Catalyst had found that 50 Fortune 500 companies had all-male boards. A variety of reasons are behind the decline. Some companies on Catalyst's 2013 list have dropped out of the Fortune 500. A few have since been acquired by companies with women on their boards. Still, others may have named a woman in response to the ever-increasing pressure to make corporate boards more diverse.

Despite this progress, several female business leaders told Fortune that it's unacceptable for even one Fortune 500 company to be run by an all male board.

"It is not okay for a company to have a board that does not represent the views of their customers, and women are influential decision-makers, if not thekey decision-makers, in many buying decisions," said Maureen O’Connell, the CFO at Scholastic Corp. "Also, women often have a different style for interacting with other board members. For example, women tend to bring skills such as the ability to build consensus and to be inclusive in decision-making, which can lead to better problem solving."

It's important to note that 28% of Fortune 500 firms list just one female director. Still, studies have shown that it takes at least three women to enhance performance and governance and achieve effective critical mass.

Click over to Fortune.com to see the full list of companies with no female directors.

#FOODWINEWOMEN FRIDAYS

This month, The Broadsheet is partnering with our friends at Food & Wine to bring you news and inspiration from the top women in food and drink. Here are my three favorite stories from the series this week. 

• She brought foie gras to the U.S. Ariane Daguin launched her company, D’Artagnan, 30 years ago as the only purveyor of game and foie gras in the U.S. Now she is the leading supplier of organic poultry and game in the country, and the preferred vendor of famed New York restauranteurs like Daniel Boulud and Danny Meyer. "I never see myself as a woman talking to a man, I see myself as a supplier talking to the chef." Fortune

•Life-changing bread moment. Melissa Clark, a food writer and cooking-show host, started her career by writing a book on how to use a bread machine -- even though she had never used one. File this under "being in the right place at the right time and not being afraid to take a risk." F&W

•Power women in the kitchen. “When Americans think of a French chef, they usually see a male French chef,” said famed chef Jacques Pépin. "In my family I can count seven restaurants -- all of them owned by a woman."F&W

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

•Waiting until 30. More than half of American women with at least a master's degree are having children after their 20s, according to a study by Pew Research Center.Among mothers without a college degree, 62% have their first child before the age of 25. Pew Research

•Turned off by 'brilliance' Due to popular culture linking men but not women with "raw intellectual brilliance," women are less likely to enter fields like philosophy and physics that are perceived to require inner talent, according to a study. Bloomberg

ON MY RADAR

The richest women in the world CNN

Meet Russell Simmons' secret weapon Fast Company

5 female CEOs who get up really early Bizwomen

How to build a startup that changes the world Fortune

QUOTE

We have these policies set up from the <em>Mad Men </em>era when dads worked and moms stayed at home. But that doesn’t reflect the American workforce anymore.

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) speaks with <em>Businessweek</em> for its latest cover story on maternity policies in America.
About the Author
By Caroline Fairchild
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Careers

Financial advisor presents a graph to her client.
Career HubEducation
How to become a financial advisor: 4 steps to a life-long career
By Preston ForeJanuary 2, 2025
11 months ago
Group of business people look at charts and graphs.
Career HubEducation
How to become an actuary: 4 steps to earn six figures
By Preston ForeOctober 21, 2024
1 year ago
Woman analyzes a chart with a laptop next to her.
Career HubEducation
How to become a CPA
By Preston ForeSeptember 27, 2024
1 year ago
Woman explains a concept to a woman sitting next to her.
Career HubEducation
How to become an accountant
By Preston ForeSeptember 20, 2024
1 year ago
Group of varied professionals stand looking toward the camera.
Career HubEducation
These are the nation’s fastest growing jobs—and many pay $100k
By Preston ForeSeptember 13, 2024
1 year ago
Nurse pulls cash out of the front pocket of their scrubs.
Career HubEducation
A guide to a nurse’s salary: Broken down by all 50 states and industry type
By Preston ForeAugust 7, 2024
1 year ago

Most Popular

placeholder alt text
Real Estate
The 'Great Housing Reset' is coming: Income growth will outpace home-price growth in 2026, Redfin forecasts
By Nino PaoliDecember 6, 2025
2 days ago
placeholder alt text
AI
Nvidia CEO says data centers take about 3 years to construct in the U.S., while in China 'they can build a hospital in a weekend'
By Nino PaoliDecember 6, 2025
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Economy
The most likely solution to the U.S. debt crisis is severe austerity triggered by a fiscal calamity, former White House economic adviser says
By Jason MaDecember 6, 2025
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Big Tech
Mark Zuckerberg rebranded Facebook for the metaverse. Four years and $70 billion in losses later, he’s moving on
By Eva RoytburgDecember 5, 2025
2 days ago
placeholder alt text
Economy
JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon says Europe has a 'real problem’
By Katherine Chiglinsky and BloombergDecember 6, 2025
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Uncategorized
Transforming customer support through intelligent AI operations
By Lauren ChomiukNovember 26, 2025
11 days ago
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Leadership
  • Success
  • Tech
  • Asia
  • Europe
  • Environment
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Health
  • Retail
  • Lifestyle
  • Politics
  • Newsletters
  • Magazine
  • Features
  • Commentary
  • Mpw
  • CEO Initiative
  • Conferences
  • Personal Finance
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map

© 2025 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.