Role Models for Greater Personal Freedom

• The growth of women in popular culture as anything other than fragile damsels or objects of masculine desire was slow before the 1980's and this helped to reinforce of stereotyped, second class status
• The first permanent female news anchor was Angela Rippon, in 1975
• A few female dominated sitcoms were written by Carla Lane, these were 'The Liver Birds' and 'Butterflies'
• The growth of soap operas such as Coronation Street (1960 onwards) has also offered more assertive female role models, which have contributed to women's desire for greater personal freedom
• Sonia M. Livingstone wrote her novel 'Making Sense of Television' in 1998
• Sonia M. Livingstone (1998) wrote her novel 'Making Sense of Television', which disclosed how soap operas offered more assertive female roles as they "undermine the masculine ethos... by providing a female voice and a feminine form" which contradicted traditional gender roles