蜜桃传媒在线观看入口

Guiding Women鈥檚 Careers and Changing the Media Landscape

Iman Oubou launched a digital platform, SWAAY, that highlights the stories of female leaders and champions the voices of female agents of change. On Tuesday, March 26, she was the featured speaker at 蜜桃传媒在线观看入口's Women's History Month breakfast, addressing students about her platform.

Iman

A quest for career guidance, and an examination of the female perspective in media, sparked entrepreneurial inspiration for Iman Oubou. 鈥淚 felt all I was reading in the media were related to lifestyle and fashion and beauty, rather than actual stories that showed women challenging the status quo,鈥 she told the 蜜桃传媒在线观看入口 community at the fourth annual Women鈥檚 History Month breakfast in March.

Ms. Oubou believes she has found her purpose to amplify women鈥檚 voices in the media since launching  in 2016. This digital media platform explores women鈥檚 challenges, potentials, and successes in all types of careers.

Oubou鈥檚 goal to increase women鈥檚 representation in media was solidified after winning the Miss New York beauty pageant in 2015; she wondered how to best leverage her public platform, but the vision needed seed money. When she began visiting investors to raise funds for her venture, some of those experiences were eye-opening.

Oubou said she encountered uncomfortable situations in her meetings with male investors. Some greeted her with snide remarks on her clothing, saying she was too pretty to be CEO, and suggesting she would fare better by endorsing beauty products instead. These comments on her appearance rather than her business made her feel powerless and shocked.

鈥淚n women鈥檚 lives, there鈥檚 always the narrative of 鈥榊ou鈥檙e too X to be Y,鈥 and a lot of women founders end up having not as many chances to grow multimillion-dollar businesses because they鈥檙e discouraged from the beginning due to their gender, looks, or age,鈥 Oubou said. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot of barriers for businesswomen that men don鈥檛 have to go through.鈥

Oubou noted that 70% of bylines are written by men, even on female-focused topics. Through SWAAY, she and her team try to expand perspectives and conversations by featuring women writers who go beyond the lifestyle topics of fashion, beauty, and relationships, having deeper discussions on career, policy, and health.

Despite obstacles, Oubou said her biggest motivator to persevere has been her belief that women need a publication like SWAAY. She seeks to provide advice for women who may feel lost in their career or deliver just a boost of inspiration via stories of empowerment.

At the event, 蜜桃传媒在线观看入口 President Elizabeth S. Marcuse concurred that society needs to do more in all aspects of women鈥檚 careers, so they can aspire to leadership positions. 鈥淎s President of a college whose on-campus student body is almost 90% female, I鈥檓 acutely aware of the need to promote women鈥檚 advancement in both private and public spheres,鈥 Marcuse said.