LZ Sunday Paper Newsletter: The "Minimum Alternative" Edition
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Hello, December-ites,
A particular detail that was reported deep inside a Variety article about the Matt Lauer harassment case really set the Twitterverse aflame and it was something that I could relate to directly. It was that Matt had a "secret under-desk door-locking button." In case you missed it, the story was just that. That Matt had an office inside 30 Rock that had a desk under which there was a button he could press to lock his door.
So did I.
Thank goodness one of my all-time favorite NBCU'ers corroborated my story and made me feel slightly less nuts about my memory of who had what, and for what purpose, or so I thought.
Minor point--I was nit-picking insofar as pointing out that it isn't a door-*locking* button but rather a door-*closing* button. It simply released a magnetic panel that was holding the office door open in the first place. (The locking thing I guess is a function of whether or not you keep your door handle set to the locked position or the open position, similar to how many doors work with the little buttons you push in or not on the inside of the door handle mechanism.) I'm trying to figure out what was so necessary about this in the first place. Even if you need privacy, which you sometimes do, what is the big deal about getting up and walking to the door to close it? Or, in the days of secretaries and assistants, asking them to do it? I don't know.
It's just another of the litany of things that noone thought twice about. And that I personally had access to or experienced and still do. Door-closers; meetings in hotel rooms; drinks; dinners; plane rides; parties; conventions; business trips. Everything is a conduit for untoward behavior and yet…none of it is. I mean all of these things--even having an automatic door-closer--aren't the tools of an abuser. The abuser himself is the tool--pardon the expression. It's his mind, his lack of conscience, his perversions, his power trip, and his will to prey and manipulate that can convert any situation--a photo op, lunch, car chit chat, or an office with a closed door,-- into an untoward one, at the very least, and a dangerous, violent one often enough. "Him," not "me." "Them," not "us."
Here's the week's best takes on the biggest news, plus other stuff I bet you had no time to get to. I had the time and the inclination to deliver to you the week's best and most important news about and by women in the worlds of business, politics, and culture from the best sources around.
Share interesting items you find, or whatever is on your mind with me here.
Follow me on Twitter to get a daily fix of LZSP inspo and/or general rantings and ravings.
I am on Insta @LZSundayPaper.
Or follow me @LZFloors There's always something interesting out there, even when things are looking down.
Thank you-- Lauren Z.
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THE PIC(K) OF THE WEEK:
How Nefarious Was Matt Lauer's Secret Door-Locking Button? via Slate
NEWS:
Matt Lauer and The Emails: How Accused Harassers Conjured A Fake Hillary Scandal via Salon
The 'Today Show' Pushed Out Talented Women. It Kept Matt Lauer Around For Years' via Vox
How Misogynistic Male Reporters Shaped The Coverage Of The 2016 Election via Rantt
The Insidious Economic Impact Of Sexual Harassment via The Harvard Business Review
ARTS, MEDIA, FASHION, SPORTS, & POP CULTURE:
Meryl Streep Talks To Anna Wintour About Her New Movie, Harvey Weinstein, and Her Most Challenging Role (No, Not That One) via Vogue
'Monumental Mistake:' Photographer Sorry For Altering Lupita Nyong'o's Hair via The Guardian
Celebrating The Work Of Black Women Photographers via The Cut
'Wonder Woman' Artist Gets A Nod From Prada via The San Francisco Chronicle
Book Review: Kick Against The Pricks via The New York Review of Books
Unstyled: Naomi Wolf On How Social Media Liberates Women via Refinery29
Women's Role In The European Agricultural Revolution Revealed via NPR
While Men Are Failing, 'Hidden' Works By Amazing Women Are Being Rediscovered via Quartz
…AND WHAT'S NOT TO LOVE ABOUT:
Life At The Sharp End: Jessie Knight, Britain's First Female Tattoo Artist via The Guardian
The LZ Sunday Paperâ„¢ launched at the dawn of 2014. We expose and recirculate interesting content that is about, and frequently by, women in business, with a dose of ultra-relevant culture. We think that culture comes high and low, not much in between. Our audience is vast and not gender-driven. Every week we expect to deliver at least one good laugh. Send suggestions, clips, or names of people you think might enjoy this to LZSundayPaper@gmail.com.
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