There’s no denying that the prominent hormone in the music world is testosterone. There’s more that the fairer sex can offer the music business than just groupies, and there does seem to be more and more females wielding a guitar or banging the drums. But why has it taken so long to see women at the top in the music media and business fields? After 57 years, the recent appointment of Nichola Browne at the helm of the NME sees the first female editor. As one of the most influential and prominent brands in music, this puts Browne in an enviable position of power. Whilst Browne’s appointment is politically and socially notable, and prompts the question as to why it hasn’t happened before, the real focus will be on seeing if this change of personnel can reverse the dwindling fortunes of a magazine that has seen a 27% decrease in circulation in the first six months of 2009. Or have women been given only a token chance only at this terminal stage, when the magazine industry seems unlikely to resurrect itself. Cynical, but sadly possible.
Francesca Baker