I can't even watch a ridiculous Food Network competition show without thinking about gender dynamics
There are vague-ish spoilers for all seasons of Tournament of Champions in this post, including the most recent one. Proceed with caution!
There's a cooking competition show on Food Network called Tournament of Champions that my husband and I love watching. It's incredibly over-the-top and fun. The chefs have to cook with the most ridiculous combinations of ingredients and equipment, chosen by a randomizer wheel. The chefs are so talented, and the production is incredibly corny in the best way possible. I love it so much.
One of the most interesting things about the show is that it's judged blind. The judges have no idea whose food they're tasting. The show has designated presenters that observe the chefs working and then present their food to the judges.
The season 6 finale was Sunday. The winners of all 6 seasons have been women. The final 4 this year were all women as well.
I've read studies and heard so, so many stories about how women have to produce much higher quality work to get the recognition that men do, across basically all industries. You can make arguments for all sorts of factors with Tournament of Champions, but there's clearly a pattern here. I just find it interesting that in an actual merit based competition, one with blind judging, women have completely dominated.
I always wonder how people's biases may affect how they perceive my competence as a composer and therefore whether they hire me or recommend me for projects. I've talked before about how I've noticed that generally, my friends who aren't cis white men all seem to have a harder time getting audio work, and they also deal with more intense critcism, nitpicking, and weird distrust when they do. This isn't a coincidence, y'all.
My hope for us all is this: I want us to build a better world where people can just make music and watch ridiculous Food Network shows without ever having to think about these things. I truly believe that it's possible!