Sharp Objects is the latest TV series to portray female journalists as unethical

The Atlantic

"For some reason, and despite all assurances from reporters to the contrary, Hollywood is stuck on the idea that female journalists are having sexual relationships with their bosses, their sources, or both," says Sophie Gilbert, pointing to Zoe Barnes on House of Cards, Rory Gilmore on Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life and, especially, Amy Adams' reporter character Camille Preaker on Sharp Objects. Gilbert notes that "the trope of the unethical female reporter has persisted for several decades, throughout fiction, film, and television." Gilbert points to Showtime's The Fourth Estate, which documents New York Times reporters, as showing the reality of female journalists: "When documentarians do follow female reporters around, what they capture is the opposite of the charged Hollywood fantasy. Instead, it’s visibly tired, multitasking women working relentlessly because they know the stories they’re reporting are stories that need telling. The reality might not indulge the fantasies of male writers and directors in quite the same way, but as The Fourth Estate shows, it can still make for enthralling television."