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Katie Couric: Sexism, Storytelling & Standing Up to Cancer
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Sexism in the Newsroom: The Breast Size Comments and Don Farmer's Memo
At 42:58 · chapter starts 38:30
The conversation enters darker territory when Alex asks about the specific sexist incidents Katie wrote about in her memoir. She frames it through Mad Men — she and her husband are rewatching the show, and she recognises the era she came of age in. At a radio station internship, a general manager asked her directly whether she was 'on the pill' because her breasts looked bigger than they had the previous summer [1] — Katie Couric "After a CNN executive made a crude comment about her breast size in a room full of male executives, anchor Don Farmer sat Katie down and ty…" 42:00 . At CNN, she walked into a production meeting to find an executive telling the room of male executives that she had succeeded because of her 'breast size.' She was stunned into silence. But anchor Don Farmer took her aside, sat her down at his Smith-Corona typewriter, and together they drafted a memo demanding an immediate apology, warning the executive it would remain confidential only if he complied. The incident, and Farmer's response, became a defining life lesson for Couric about the necessity of standing up for yourself. Alex connects it to a broader conversation about why women need male allies: without men in positions of power willing to take action, the cycle doesn't break.
After a CNN executive made a crude comment about her breast size in a room full of male executives, anchor Don Farmer sat Katie down and typed a formal memo demanding an apology on his Smith-Corona. The experience taught her the importance of standing up for herself — a lesson she credits as transformative.
