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Waking Up In News America

Date1986

Label TextIn 1984, the CBS Morning News program began looking for a woman newscaster to team up with the male anchor Bill Kurtis. The artist Robert Heinecken was hired as a consultant to help research the most compatible pair. To raise ratings, the network decided the female anchor should be "attractive, sensual, intelligent and professional" but also appear as a dutiful partner in her interaction with Kurtis, "to convey a sense of marital stability to the female audience." Heinecken created hybrid images to assess the telegenic compatibility of different matches and ultimately Phyllis George was chosen as the female anchor woman. The artist's blurry images of other female contenders and the superimposed texts seen here reflect on a process that was inextricably linked to stereotype and bias.

Object number86.128

ProvenanceGift of the artist 1986

Exhibition HistorySeattle, Washiongton, Seattle Art Museum, Stills: Cinema and Video Transformed, Jan. 30 - Mar. 16, 1986. Seattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, Mechanical Bride, Mar. 8, 2014 - Aug. 10, 2014. Seattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, Pop Departures. Oct. 9, 2014 - Jan. 11, 2015. Text by Catharina Manchanda, et al. No cat. no., p. 101, not reproduced.

Credit LineGift of the artist

Dimensions26 x 38 in. (66 x 96.5 cm)

MediumOffset lithograph