women's hour

Question 1

When did women’s hour begin, who was the first presenter and what is significant about them?

Answer 1

• 1946
• Alan Ivimey
• he was the first and only male presenter

Question 2

Who presents it now?

Answer 2

Anita Rani, Emma Barnett (formally as of 2024), Nuala McGovern

Question 3

Give examples of topics covered.

Answer 3

sex and relationships, parenting, leading women, health, cook the perfect…, politics and society, business

Question 4

What is the target audience?

Answer 4

• middle aged, upper class women
• women who are struggling and need advice
• regular listeners to bbc radio 4
• people who want to hear about issues in the world (especially regarding women)

Question 5

Give some ways audiences can interact with womens hour.

Answer 5

• email at womanshour.yourviews@bbc.co.uk
• contact them on their instagram and twitter accounts @BBCWomansHour
• send a message through whatsapp at 03700 100 444
• text them at 84844

they read out peoples opinions/views at the end of the show

Question 6

How does bell hooks feminism and race theory relate to women’s hour?

Answer 6

Women’s hour challenges bell hooks’ feminism and race theory with the idea that it promotes feminism, instead of suppressing women, and it rejects the idea of men having the stereotypical patriarchal power which is generally embedded into media products.

However to begin with, women’s hour initially didn’t challenge the theory as the first presenter was a white middle aged heterosexual man, but women’s hour did modernise with the times, adapting to the new approach of society in regards to feminism and race.

However the target audience being mainly middle class white women embraces the theory as it excludes women of colour (theory - suppression of coloured women)

Question 7

How does Clay Shirky’s End of Audience theory relate to women’s hour?

Answer 7

the promotion of audience interaction supports the theory as it presents the idea that audiences are no longer passive due to digital convergence (social media)

Question 8

How does Stuart Hall’s reception theory relate to women’s hour?

Answer 8

preferred - people who already listen to bbc radio 4, women, middle class/aged

negotiated - gay men, trans females, ethnic minorities (may not feel as represented as others), men who only listen for the topics they enjoy (e.g. sports)

oppositional - white middle aged heterosexual men (but not all) because they are not the people benefitting from it

Question 9

How is the BBC funded and how is this different from other broadcasting services?

Answer 9

BBC is funded through the license fee paid by households in the UK that own a television or watch live TV.

This differs from other commercial radio, which are funded through adverts and sponsorships.

Question 10

When is it streamed?

Answer 10

• from 10-11am - one hour slot on BBC radio 4 - then becomes a podcast after its been broadcasted live
• there is also an omnibus edition on saturdays at 4.30pm, which broadcasts highlights from that weeks episodes
• used to be called late night women’s hour which was at 11 pm for 1 hour, there were 2 sessions (thursday and friday)

Question 11

How would the topics discussed today differ from the topics discussed when it first started?

Answer 11

• there would’ve been no discussion of taboo topics e.g. birth, sexuality, periods/health (40s)
• there would’ve been no discussion of divorce, separation, powerful women/empowerment (40s)
• there would’ve been discussions about war (40s)
• there would’ve been promotions of women in the household (motherhood, cleaning, cooking) (40s)
• there would’ve been no discussion of plastic surgery (40s)
• no discussion of women in careers (40s)

Question 12

What topics were discussed in the 40s when the show first started?

Answer 12

• infant welfare
• gardening
• society gossip
• beauty culture
• tennis
• poultry keeping