Push to make Top Gear less sexist

[DS1]

POPULAR boy-racer TV show Top Gear may be forced to hire new presenters as part of a government push to make the show more gender and ethnically balanced.

This week the Equality Bill was introduced into Britain which encourages employers to take "positive action" to widen diversity in the public sector workforce.

Top Gear, along with a number of shows funded by the BBC, now fall under the Bill.

There has been pressure on the boys who review their mechanical toys to change, with a leading academic earlier this month saying that the BBC should employ more women to help make shows such as Top Gear "female-friendly", reports London’s Daily Mail.

Dr Louise Livesey, tutor in sociology and women's studies at Oxford, accused Top Gear of "entrenched, institutional sexism".

http://www.news.com.au/story/0,27574,25408602-5017817,00.html


How much do you want to bet any woman hired is going to be smoking hot, stacked, and wearing hardly anything? It'll be a mockery the bill's intentions, and the Gov't wouldn't even realize it.

[MissMillie]

1. I'd be betting w/ you, not against you

it's a shame really


Personally, I say let the show be sexist if it wants to. People can always not watch.

There is plenty of programming geared toward women, and enough market share to go around.


But that's just me.

[flvegan]

4. Clarkson will just say they're already in compliance and

point at James May as evidence. That would be very Top Gear.

[DS1]

5. I lol'd

[Eyerish]

12. OMG....

:spray: :rofl: Poor James...

I <3 Captain Slow :loveya:

[flvegan]

2. Bikini Stig: Danica Patrick

:o

[Pierre.Suave]

3. I like how you think...

:P

[flvegan]

10. Or, they could have their own Vanna White work the Cool Wall.

"Misty, don't listen to Richard because he's an idiot. Put the Morgan Aeromax under "Seriously Uncool"

Naturally, in Top Gear top fashion, she'd be over the top hot and over the top "bag of hammers" bright.

[Pierre.Suave]

32. sort of a tangent...

but, Vanna White is a HOTTIE!

:P

[DS1]

6. Yes

[dropkickpa]

7. Cripes

I like Top gear just the way it is. It's fun!

[redqueen]

9. +1

[redqueen]

8. Get out of my head!

That's exactly what I thought when I read about the push for "diversity"... a smoking hot babe with a few average looking guys. Except for Richard. <3

[Eyerish]

11. Oh FFS...

Those people need to get a grip. The show is great as it is. I don't see how adding a woman to Top Gear would make it more "women friendly". Considering the type of woman they'd probably hire, it would probably just get more men watching the show :rofl:

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

13. What they need to do is introduce a small adorable child as a host on the show.

Some kid with big chubby cheeks, freckles, and a cute catchphrase.

And maybe a puppet. From outerspace. Which only Hammond can see.

[Pierre.Suave]

14. HAHAHAHA

now that would be awesome...

:rofl:

[flvegan]

17. Small, adorable child? They already have Hammond.

[WolverineDG]

18. Why does everyone hate Hampster?

:rofl:

Top Gear is fine the way it is.

dg

[flvegan]

20. I love Hammond.

I was channeling Jeremy again.

[mainegreen]

15. Dwarfs! They need dwarfs!

Think of the fun!

Dwarfs test racing tiny, underpowered Indian, Chinese and Russian cars!

Now THATS diversity!

[LibertyLover]

16. What do they need dwarves for?

they already have Richard Hammond. Hope they don't mess up the show too badly now - I'm female and I like it just the way it is. Captain Slow and all.

[DS1]

19. As someone one inch shorter than Hammond, I resent the heightism in here

[Rambis]

21. Kelly Brooke isn't doing anything at the moment

I say she has talent

[Xithras]

23. Kelly Brook, driving a Ferarri, wearing only that, every week for the first 5 mintues of the show.

Yep, THAT would get the ratings up.

But that would also be sexist. It's the sort of thing they'd do though, just to piss off the people trying to torque their show.

[Rambis]

24. Whats wrong with being sexy?

Had to be done!

[Xithras]

22. Top Gear? Sexist?

It's a car show. They talk about cars. They drive cars. They do stupid things like drive cheap cars across deserts and drive scooters across Vietnam. They mock Americans, and race motorhomes until they fall apart.

In the years I've watched it, I don't recall them ever being sexist towards women. Are the shows guests heavily weighted towards men? Sure, but that's because the sports car market is male oriented in general, and not many famous women are interested in driving their Reasonably Priced Car around their racetrack at ungodly speeds.

Is there an insinuation here that shows designed to appeal to men are, by their nature, assumed to be sexist from the get-go?

[jmowreader]

25. Okay, so let me get this straight...

they're going to work to make Top Gear less sexist, but will do nothing about the British version of Lifetime TV.

The thing is, there are no shortage of television shows aimed either mostly or absolutely at women. Why can't there be some shows that are mostly for men?

[SpartanDem]

26. Because any show geared toward men

must be evil and sexist

singed,

bat shit crazy feminist

[jmowreader]

28. Oh, that's right. I forgot.

There is one rather minor problem with attempting to make Top Gear more female-friendly: it deals in a subject most women don't give a shit about.

[petronius]

27. Fair enough - as long as the Oxygen Network has to show Dirty Harry once in a while

(Yeah, I know, different country and all that...)

[supernova]

29. This Feminist thinks this is stupid

Part of the appeal of the show is that it's so obviously OTT testosterone-driven.

[flvegan]

30. Don't forget: Season 8, Episode 7 is on tonight, 8pm.

[Pierre.Suave]

31. I wish I could watch it...

Stupid Comcast cant seem to get me BOTH picture and sound, only one or the other...

:eyes:

[flvegan]

33. ...and you haven't killed anyone yet?

C'mon man!

[Pierre.Suave]

34. ha, not yet

but I am getting there...

[GOPisEvil]

35. Sabine Hack please.

Thank you.

[flvegan]

36. Who's she?

[GOPisEvil]

37. Shit....got my German Sabine's mixed up.

Sabine Hack was a tennis player in the '80s and '90s.

You know the one I mean. Her last name is escaping me at the moment.

[flvegan]

38. Schmidt.

[GOPisEvil]

39. Right, right...

She can shift my gears any time.

[flvegan]

40. Agreed.

I love listening to her talk smack about Clarkson. "He's not a total idiot." She's definitely a tv crush of mine.

I'd also love to see Fiona Bruce on the show a few more times. Wa wa wa.

[GOPisEvil]

41. The episode with her and Kate Silverton was really, really nice.

I'd have never guessed Fiona is older than I am.

[flvegan]

42. I loved when they did the Peel50

and Jeremy is driving into the elevator and she has to help him. He's checking her out and he slips with "you know, she has a very nice bottom. Oh dear, did I said that out loud?"

For the record, she certainly does.

[GOPisEvil]

43. Yes she does.

Something about Kate and those glasses... *sigh*

Edit - I like how this discussion on sexism has taken several (moderately) sexist turns).