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Finkbeiner test

January 01, 1970

The Finkbeiner test, named for the science journalist Ann Finkbeiner,[1] is a checklist to help science journalists avoid gender bias in articles about women in science.[2][3] It asks writers to avoid describing women scientists in terms of stereotypically feminine traits, such as their family arrangements.

The Finkbeiner test has been linked to affirmative action, because writing can cause readers to view women in science as different from men in negative or unfair ways.[2] The test helps avoid gender bias in science reporting similarly to various tests that focus on under-representation of marginalized groups in different career fields.[4]

Checklist edit

 
Aschwanden at the Aspen Ideas Festival in 2015

The Finkbeiner test is a checklist proposed by freelance journalist Christie Aschwanden to help journalists avoid gender bias in media articles about women in science.[3] To pass the test, an article about a female scientist must not mention:

  • That she is a woman
  • Her husband's job
  • Her childcare arrangements
  • How she nurtures her underlings
  • How she was taken aback by the competitiveness in her field
  • How she is a role model for other women
  • How she's the "first woman to ..."[5]

History edit

Aschwanden formulated the test in an article in Double X Science, an online magazine for women published on 5 March 2013.[6] She created the test in the spirit of (but was not inspired by) the Bechdel test – used to highlight gender bias in film – in response to the sexist media coverage of women scientists she noticed. She recalled:[3]

Campaigns to recognize outstanding female scientists have led to a recognizable genre of media coverage. Let's call it "A lady who..." genre. You've seen these profiles, of course you have, because they're everywhere. The hallmark of "A lady who..." profile is that it treats its subject's sex as her most defining detail. She's not just a great scientist, she's a woman! And if she’s also a wife and a mother, those roles get emphasized too.

Aschwanden named the test after journalist Ann Finkbeiner, winner of the 2008 AIP Science Communication Award,[1] who had earlier written a post[7] for the science blog The Last Word on Nothing about her decision not to write about the subject of her latest profile, an astronomer, "as a woman".[5]

Both journalists agree that the test "should apply mainly to the sort of general-interest scientist profiles that one might find in The New York Times or the front section of Nature, which are supposed to focus on professional accomplishments".[3] The point of the test is to not overemphasize or privilege the gender of a female scientist. Even Finkbeiner, who vowed to "ignore gender" in her writing, actually tripped up on the tendency to focus on sex; in an astronomer's profile she considered mentioning that the scientist was the "first" to win a certain award. "After a reader urged Finkbeiner to stick to her pledge, she [left out 'the first.']"[3] The tactic of singling out women as "role models" can also distort gender equality in the reception of news reporting. Students indiscriminately cite scholars and mentors of any sex or gender as "great role models"; being a role model is not unique to a person's gender. Thus, emphasizing sex in profiles about members of marginalized groups reinforces their supposed difference, perpetuating gender bias in science.[3]

Reception edit

The test was mentioned in the media criticism of the New York Times's obituary of rocket scientist Yvonne Brill. That obituary, published on 30 March 2013, by Douglas Martin, began with the words: "She made a mean beef stroganoff, followed her husband from job to job and took eight years off from work to raise three children".[8] A few hours after publication the New York Times revised the obituary to address some of the criticisms; the revised version begins "She was a brilliant rocket scientist who followed her husband from job to job..."[8][9]

Another New York Times article, on Jennifer Doudna, published on 11 May 2015,[10] drew similar criticism with reference to the Finkbeiner test.[11] An article in The Globe and Mail on astrophysicist Victoria Kaspi,[12] published on 16 February 2016, drew the same criticism,[13] as did David Quammen's book A Tangled Tree, for giving women scientists, especially Lynn Margulis, short shrift.[14]

Susan Gelman, Professor of Psychology at the University of Michigan, applauded the move to report on female scientists without emphasising their gender, but questions whether the Finkbeiner test should seek to eliminate all references to personal life, suggesting that the move should be towards asking male scientists about personal issues too.[15] This view is shared by other writers.[16] [17] In addition, Vasudevan Mukunth points out in The Wire that countries in which women are drastically under-represented in science might want to bend the test's rules in hopes of highlighting any systemic barriers: "The test's usefulness rests on the myth of a level playing field—there is none in India."[18] In another post on Last Word on Nothing, Finkbeiner responded to these questions by arguing with herself.[19]

Reversed Finkbeiner edit

The "Reversed Finkbeiner" approach is an exercise in which students are asked to write an article about a male scientist that would fail the Finkbeiner test if it were about a woman.[20][21]

References edit

  1. ^ a b "Ann Finkbeiner". www.aip.org. 3 March 2017. Retrieved 28 January 2019.
  2. ^ a b "Debate: Why a Test Used to Spot Gender Bias in Science Reports Can Be Myopic". The Wire. Retrieved 28 January 2019.
  3. ^ a b c d e f "The Finkbeiner Test". Columbia Journalism Review. Retrieved 28 January 2019.
  4. ^ Hickey, Walt; Koeze, Ella; Dottle, Rachael; Wezerek, Gus (27 December 2017). "Creating The Next Bechdel Test". FiveThirtyEight. Retrieved 28 January 2019.
  5. ^ a b Brainard, Curtis (22 March 2013). "'The Finkbeiner Test' Seven rules to avoid gratuitous gender profiles of female scientists". Columbia Journalism Review. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
  6. ^ Aschwanden, Christie (5 March 2013). . Double X Science. Archived from the original on 12 March 2017. Retrieved 31 March 2013.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  7. ^ Finkbeiner, Ann (17 January 2013). "What I'm Not Going to Do". The Last Word On Nothing. Retrieved 2 April 2013.
  8. ^ a b Gonzalez, Robert T. (31 March 2013). "The New York Times fails miserably in its obituary for rocket scientist Yvonne Brill". io9. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
  9. ^ "NewsDiffs | Diffing: Yvonne Brill, a Pioneering Rocket Scientist, Dies at 88". www.newsdiffs.org. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  10. ^ Pollack, Andrew (11 May 2015). "Jennifer Doudna, A Pioneer Who Helped Simplify Genome Editing". New York Times. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  11. ^ "Problems With How We Talk About Female Scientists « Berman Institute Bioethics Bulletin". bioethicsbulletin.org. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  12. ^ Semeniuk, Ivan (16 February 2016). "McGill astrophysicist is first woman to win Canada's top science award". The Globe and Mail.
  13. ^ Shanahan, Marie-Claire (18 February 2016). . Boundary Vision. Archived from the original on 21 April 2019.
  14. ^ Check Hayden, Erika (13 August 2018). "A New View of Evolution That Can't Be Represented by a Tree". The New York Times Book Review.
  15. ^ "Sexism In Science | Common Reader". Common Reader. 23 February 2015. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  16. ^ "Asking Questions and the "Finkbeiner Test"". Uncertain Principles. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  17. ^ Initiative, Katie Hafner,Carol Sutton Lewis,The Lost Women of Science. "The Feminist Test We Keep Failing: Lost Women of Science Podcast, Season 3 Bonus Episode". Scientific American. Retrieved 18 January 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  18. ^ "Debate: Why a Test Used to Spot Gender Bias in Science Reports Can Be Myopic – The Wire". The Wire. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
  19. ^ "The Last Word On Nothing | Arguing with the Finkbeiner Test". www.lastwordonnothing.com. Retrieved 18 January 2023.
  20. ^ . www.futurescienceleaders.com. Archived from the original on 15 October 2015. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  21. ^ . genegeek. Archived from the original on 18 August 2015. Retrieved 14 October 2015.

January 01, 1970
finkbeiner, test, named, science, journalist, finkbeiner, checklist, help, science, journalists, avoid, gender, bias, articles, about, women, science, asks, writers, avoid, describing, women, scientists, terms, stereotypically, feminine, traits, such, their, f. The Finkbeiner test named for the science journalist Ann Finkbeiner 1 is a checklist to help science journalists avoid gender bias in articles about women in science 2 3 It asks writers to avoid describing women scientists in terms of stereotypically feminine traits such as their family arrangements The Finkbeiner test has been linked to affirmative action because writing can cause readers to view women in science as different from men in negative or unfair ways 2 The test helps avoid gender bias in science reporting similarly to various tests that focus on under representation of marginalized groups in different career fields 4 Contents 1 Checklist 2 History 3 Reception 4 Reversed Finkbeiner 5 ReferencesChecklist edit nbsp Aschwanden at the Aspen Ideas Festival in 2015 The Finkbeiner test is a checklist proposed by freelance journalist Christie Aschwanden to help journalists avoid gender bias in media articles about women in science 3 To pass the test an article about a female scientist must not mention That she is a woman Her husband s job Her childcare arrangements How she nurtures her underlings How she was taken aback by the competitiveness in her field How she is a role model for other women How she s the first woman to 5 History editAschwanden formulated the test in an article in Double X Science an online magazine for women published on 5 March 2013 6 She created the test in the spirit of but was not inspired by the Bechdel test used to highlight gender bias in film in response to the sexist media coverage of women scientists she noticed She recalled 3 Campaigns to recognize outstanding female scientists have led to a recognizable genre of media coverage Let s call it A lady who genre You ve seen these profiles of course you have because they re everywhere The hallmark of A lady who profile is that it treats its subject s sex as her most defining detail She s not just a great scientist she s a woman And if she s also a wife and a mother those roles get emphasized too Aschwanden named the test after journalist Ann Finkbeiner winner of the 2008 AIP Science Communication Award 1 who had earlier written a post 7 for the science blog The Last Word on Nothing about her decision not to write about the subject of her latest profile an astronomer as a woman 5 Both journalists agree that the test should apply mainly to the sort of general interest scientist profiles that one might find in The New York Times or the front section of Nature which are supposed to focus on professional accomplishments 3 The point of the test is to not overemphasize or privilege the gender of a female scientist Even Finkbeiner who vowed to ignore gender in her writing actually tripped up on the tendency to focus on sex in an astronomer s profile she considered mentioning that the scientist was the first to win a certain award After a reader urged Finkbeiner to stick to her pledge she left out the first 3 The tactic of singling out women as role models can also distort gender equality in the reception of news reporting Students indiscriminately cite scholars and mentors of any sex or gender as great role models being a role model is not unique to a person s gender Thus emphasizing sex in profiles about members of marginalized groups reinforces their supposed difference perpetuating gender bias in science 3 Reception editThe test was mentioned in the media criticism of the New York Times s obituary of rocket scientist Yvonne Brill That obituary published on 30 March 2013 by Douglas Martin began with the words She made a mean beef stroganoff followed her husband from job to job and took eight years off from work to raise three children 8 A few hours after publication the New York Times revised the obituary to address some of the criticisms the revised version begins She was a brilliant rocket scientist who followed her husband from job to job 8 9 Another New York Times article on Jennifer Doudna published on 11 May 2015 10 drew similar criticism with reference to the Finkbeiner test 11 An article in The Globe and Mail on astrophysicist Victoria Kaspi 12 published on 16 February 2016 drew the same criticism 13 as did David Quammen s book A Tangled Tree for giving women scientists especially Lynn Margulis short shrift 14 Susan Gelman Professor of Psychology at the University of Michigan applauded the move to report on female scientists without emphasising their gender but questions whether the Finkbeiner test should seek to eliminate all references to personal life suggesting that the move should be towards asking male scientists about personal issues too 15 This view is shared by other writers 16 17 In addition Vasudevan Mukunth points out in The Wire that countries in which women are drastically under represented in science might want to bend the test s rules in hopes of highlighting any systemic barriers The test s usefulness rests on the myth of a level playing field there is none in India 18 In another post on Last Word on Nothing Finkbeiner responded to these questions by arguing with herself 19 Reversed Finkbeiner editThe Reversed Finkbeiner approach is an exercise in which students are asked to write an article about a male scientist that would fail the Finkbeiner test if it were about a woman 20 21 References edit a b Ann Finkbeiner www aip org 3 March 2017 Retrieved 28 January 2019 a b Debate Why a Test Used to Spot Gender Bias in Science Reports Can Be Myopic The Wire Retrieved 28 January 2019 a b c d e f The Finkbeiner Test Columbia Journalism Review Retrieved 28 January 2019 Hickey Walt Koeze Ella Dottle Rachael Wezerek Gus 27 December 2017 Creating The Next Bechdel Test FiveThirtyEight Retrieved 28 January 2019 a b Brainard Curtis 22 March 2013 The Finkbeiner Test Seven rules to avoid gratuitous gender profiles of female scientists Columbia Journalism Review Retrieved 31 March 2013 Aschwanden Christie 5 March 2013 The Finkbeiner Test What matters in stories about women scientists Double X Science Archived from the original on 12 March 2017 Retrieved 31 March 2013 a href Template Cite news html title Template Cite news cite news a CS1 maint bot original URL status unknown link Finkbeiner Ann 17 January 2013 What I m Not Going to Do The Last Word On Nothing Retrieved 2 April 2013 a b Gonzalez Robert T 31 March 2013 The New York Times fails miserably in its obituary for rocket scientist Yvonne Brill io9 Retrieved 31 March 2013 NewsDiffs Diffing Yvonne Brill a Pioneering Rocket Scientist Dies at 88 www newsdiffs org Retrieved 14 October 2015 Pollack Andrew 11 May 2015 Jennifer Doudna A Pioneer Who Helped Simplify Genome Editing New York Times Retrieved 14 October 2015 Problems With How We Talk About Female Scientists Berman Institute Bioethics Bulletin bioethicsbulletin org Retrieved 14 October 2015 Semeniuk Ivan 16 February 2016 McGill astrophysicist is first woman to win Canada s top science award The Globe and Mail Shanahan Marie Claire 18 February 2016 Two stories same scientist Gender and coverage of the Herzberg medal Boundary Vision Archived from the original on 21 April 2019 Check Hayden Erika 13 August 2018 A New View of Evolution That Can t Be Represented by a Tree The New York Times Book Review Sexism In Science Common Reader Common Reader 23 February 2015 Retrieved 14 October 2015 Asking Questions and the Finkbeiner Test Uncertain Principles Retrieved 14 October 2015 Initiative Katie Hafner Carol Sutton Lewis The Lost Women of Science The Feminist Test We Keep Failing Lost Women of Science Podcast Season 3 Bonus Episode Scientific American Retrieved 18 January 2023 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint multiple names authors list link Debate Why a Test Used to Spot Gender Bias in Science Reports Can Be Myopic The Wire The Wire Retrieved 3 April 2018 The Last Word On Nothing Arguing with the Finkbeiner Test www lastwordonnothing com Retrieved 18 January 2023 The Reversed Finkbeiner Test www futurescienceleaders com Archived from the original on 15 October 2015 Retrieved 14 October 2015 Finkbeiner posts round 2 genegeek Archived from the original on 18 August 2015 Retrieved 14 October 2015 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Finkbeiner test amp oldid 1190863021, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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