Washington Women in Journalism

"Just one anecdote which may say a lot," said MSNBC's Andrea Mitchell at the 6th Annual Washington Women in Journalism Awards at Anderson House in Washington, DC co-hosted by Gloria Dittus, Chairman Story Partners and Washingtonian President and CEO Cathy Merrill Williams kicking off The White House Correspondents' Association dinner weekend festivities. "Forty years ago when I was NBC's energy correspondent covering nuclear power, The Three Mile Island happened. I was assigned to go to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission on East-West Highway which was conisdered a safe place for me to report. The bureau chief, a man I ,oved and admired to this day. kept sending, rotating men into Pennsylvania to cover the accident when we didn't know much radiation was actually being released. And every day, every 24 hours another man, male correspondent would go in. And finally by the end of the week I marched into his office and said: 'I'm the energy correspndent. I cover nuclear power. I'm the only one who has not been assigned.' And he said: 'I didn't want to send any women of childbearing age when we didn't know what the radiation was going to be.' And I said: 'Did it ever occur to you that men's balls are as vulnerable as women's ovaries?' He sent me the next day and I basicall stayed for a year.'