Good morning, Broadsheet readers! Too many corporate board members still don’t care about diversity, a female rapper has a plan to get more women into music production, and the hashtag #MeToo takes over social media. Have an outspoken day.
EVERYONE'S TALKING
• #MeToo. While I hope we can someday soon start a Broadsheet without the words "Harvey Weinstein," today is not that day.
However, the latest Weinstein-related story is actually less focused on the ex-power broker himself—and more an acknowledgment of the vast numbers of women who have faced some type of sexual harassment or assault during their professional lives.
If you spent any time on social media over the past couple of days, you've undoubtedly seen the hashtag #metoo, which was started when Alyssa Milano suggested that women use it online if they had been victims of sexual harassment or sexual assault. Milano, of course, appeared in Charmed alongside actress Rose McGowan, who last week accused Weinstein of raping her. (Weinstein's reps have denied the allegations.)
“If all the women who have been sexually harassed or assaulted wrote ‘Me too’ as a status, we might give people a sense of the magnitude of the problem,” Milano wrote.
Not surprisingly, the hashtag exploded, with women from across the world coming forward to say that they too had been affected and, in many cases, to share their stories.
I encourage you to take a moment to search #metoo. While the many (MANY) messages are on one level heartbreaking, they are also a reminder that none of us is alone—and that we all have a voice. Fortune
ALSO IN THE HEADLINES
• Get on board! Let's start with some good news: A new PwC survey of nearly 900 directors found that a full 73% recognize the benefits of having diversity on their boards. Now, on to the rage-inducing: A small but startling share—16%—said that gender and racial diversity has "no benefits at all." (Another 11% said his or her board didn't have diversity and therefore didn't remark on its upside.) Also, you may not be shocked to hear that of the 27% of directors who said there is too much attention on gender diversity, 97% were male. Fortune
• World's smallest violin. While employment data continues to show that men dominate the top ranks of virtually every profession, a new study from EY finds that more than a third of Americans think the heightened focus on diversity at work has overlooked white men. In fact, 32% of male respondents reported feeling "personally excluded" in the office. Washington Post
• Destroying to create. At last week's Fortune Most Powerful Women Summit, the CEOs of Staples, Ulta Beauty, Synchrony Financial, and OpenTable shared their tips for leading when both your company and industry are in a state of flux. The hardest part, according to Staples chief Shira Goodman? "You have to destroy what you built” if you want to make serious change. Fortune
• "One-woman WikiLeaks." Daphne Caruana Galizia, the journalist who led the Panama Papers investigation into corruption in Malta, was killed on Monday in a car bomb near her home. According to The Guardian, Galizia's blog posts "often attracted more readers than the combined circulation of the country’s newspapers." The Guardian
MOVERS AND SHAKERS: Microsoft has nominated Penny Pritzker, founder and chairman of PSP Capital and former U.S. Secretary of Commerce, to its board. Callista Gingrich has been confirmed as U.S. ambassador to the Vatican.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
• Feminist flow. Queens rapper Dai Burger talks about the launch of her Where My Girls initiative, a series of studio sessions with girls aged 10 to 18 teaching them the ropes of music production. She hopes it's a step toward bringing more women into the behind-the-scenes roles in the music industry. Broadly
• All about allies. This story digs into the research around what makes for a powerful male ally—and why, despite their personal belief in gender equality, so many men struggle to effectively advocate for their female colleagues. Harvard Business Review
• The Wintour brand. AdWeek has named Anna Wintour it's 2017 "Brand Visionary." What does the fashion icon think of the honorific? "I have a wonderful family, and they do not think of me as an icon or a brand.” AdWeek
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ON MY RADAR
Shonda Rhimes becomes just the third black woman in the TV Hall of Fame Vanity Fair
Hillary Clinton: 'Currents of anger and resentment are underpinning our national conversation' Fortune
More women running for office and sharing their stories in the Trump era San Francisco Chronicle
14 states slam the transgender soldier ban in court Bloomberg
QUOTE
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| Actor Reese Witherspoon, after revealing that she has been sexually assaulted multiple times throughout her career in Hollywood |
