Yes, Biden’s All-Female Press Team Is Clearly Virtue Signalling

Summary

Joe Biden's decision to appoint an all-female press team has sparked debates about virtue signaling and gender equality, with some viewing it as progress in recognizing women's capabilities and others as political pandering that undermines the appointees' qualifications.

Abstract

The announcement of an all-female press team by President-elect Joe Biden has ignited discussions on the implications of such a move. Critics argue that it is a clear example of virtue signaling, suggesting that the emphasis on gender rather than qualifications undermines the legitimacy of the appointees. This perspective is countered by those who see the appointments as a significant step towards gender parity in high-profile political roles. The debate touches on broader issues of diversity and representation in politics, with some pointing out that previous administrations have also included women in senior communication roles, albeit without the same level of fanfare as Biden's announcements. The discussion raises questions about the best way to promote inclusivity without inadvertently diminishing the achievements of the individuals involved.

Opinions

Some men feel that the all-female press team is reverse sexism and question why such gender-based hiring is acceptable for communication roles but not traditionally male-dominated jobs.
Women and advocates for gender equality view the appointments as a long-overdue recognition of their skills and a necessary correction to historical underrepresentation in politics.
The author is conflicted, recognizing the importance of female visibility in prominent roles while also feeling that Biden's approach to announcing these appointments is more about political gain than genuine progress for gender equality.
There is a concern that Biden's pre-announcement of selecting a woman as vice president and for his press team could imply that these women were chosen based on identity politics rather than their qualifications.
The author suggests that previous administrations, including those of Obama and Trump, have had women in significant communication roles, indicating that Biden's appointments are not as unprecedented as they are presented.
The author advocates for a future where gender is not a factor in leadership roles, and where appointments are based solely on merit without the need for publicized fanfare over gender representation.

The question is, does it matter?

Source — Twitter

When Joe Biden announced his all-female press team last week, I could tell there was going to be trouble. After all, it didn’t take a genius to predict that there would be arguments about virtue signalling and sexism raging across the internet.

“Oh, so now it’s okay to hire people based on their sex?” cried a chorus of outraged men. “How long until we see the first all-female team of sanitation engineers or sheet-metal workers?” They accused anybody who celebrated the announcement of hypocrisy and sexism. “This isn’t progress,” they argued, “it’s pandering.”

Women all over the world rolled their eyes at the double-standard. “So a team of talented, highly-qualified women is chosen for a prominent White House role for the first time, and now men want to talk about diversity?” they fired back. “Where was all this concern when these teams were full of old white men?!”

I was uncharacteristically quiet during these exchanges. Not because I didn’t have an opinion, but because I was conflicted. On the one hand, I think it’s great that women are finally getting the visibility they deserve in these high profile roles, but on the other hand, Biden’s press team appointments were clearly virtue signalling.

Before I provoke any further eye-rolling, I’m not saying this because they’re women or because I don’t think they’ve earned their success. They have. I’m saying it because the way Biden frames his announcements shows that his interests clearly lie in what choosing them will do for him, rather than what it will do for them.

Exhibit A is Kamala Harris’ selection as vice-president. Did Biden need to state ahead of time that he would choose a woman as vice-president? Do candidates typically announce the gender or race of their picks ahead of time?

No.

Biden announced that he was going to choose a woman because he thought it would give him a boost with female and black voters. Otherwise, he could have just kept his mouth shut, picked Kamala as vice-president, and if he was asked why he’d chosen a woman, explained that she was the best person for the job. Wouldn’t this have gone a long way to silencing the suggestions that she got the job because of identity politics and not simply because she deserved it?

Biden’s pre-announcement was a calculated move which strengthened his standing with certain voter demographics but weakened Kamala’s legitimacy as vice-president. All Biden’s announcement did for Kamala was suggest to the public that she got the job because she was only competing against ~7% of the population.

These are the same doubts that people who are complaining about his all-female press team are playing to. Spotlighting their womanhood doesn’t empower them, it minimises the other, far more important attributes that have gotten them where they are. It validates those who believe, despite all evidence to the contrary, that the game is rigged against them because of what’s between their legs.

Exhibit B is the fact that there’s nothing particularly noteworthy about putting women in high profile roles in the White House. Joe might be presenting these appointments as if they’re groundbreaking, but he’s far from the first to recognise the talents of women.

When America finally bids farewell to Donald Trump in January, it will also be waving goodbye to his press secretary Kayleigh McEnany, who was preceded in the role by Stephanie Grisham, and before her, Sarah Huckabee-Sanders.

When Grisham left her position as press secretary, she became the White House Communications Director, taking over from Bill Shine, who was preceded by Hope Hicks. Alyssa Farah, took over her role as White House director of strategic communications from Mercedes Schlapp.

We have to go back to the Obama-Biden administration to find a female senior advisor to the vice-president (probably because Mike Pence is afraid to be alone in a room with a woman), but when we do, we find Shailagh Murray, who served as Biden’s deputy Chief of Staff and communications director before becoming Obama’s Senior Advisor.

The last administration that didn’t employ a woman in a senior role in the press team was Jimmy Carter’s (from 1977–1981). Every administration since then has employed a woman either as press secretary or White House communications director at some point during the run. Usually both. It might feel as if women haven’t been in these roles, but that’s mainly because their appointments haven’t been announced with the same fanfare as Biden employs. I’d argue that that’s how it should be.

So Joe, next time you hire a woman to do a job, treat her like you would a man and just hire her. Don’t tell everybody in advance about her sex. Don’t drone on about how proud you are of her, or how historic this moment is. Don’t highlight the fact that your press team is made up “entirely by women”, highlight how smart and qualified they are, and what a great job you believe they’re going to do.

As Sheryl Sandberg once wrote: “In the future, there will be no female leaders. There will just be leaders.” Hopefully, when that day comes, there will just be press teams too.