feminist criticism

As 2010 draws to a close, it’s the time of year that nonprofits ask for donations. Bitch Media is no different; we need ongoing financial support. Usually, we would ask you to make a gift after telling you why you should support us. However, Bitch Media is lucky. We don’t need to tell you why Bitch is important because we can let our supporters tell their own stories. This week, Andi Zeisler, Bitch Media co-founder and editorial/creative director, explains why she ♥s Bitch.

Asking me to talk about why I love Bitch is sort of like asking a pre–health kick Cookie Monster to explain why he loves cookies. As a cofounder and staff member since 1996, I feel like Bitch is so much a part of who I am that I might not be able to adequately (or, for that matter, objectively) answer the question. But I’ll try.

As 2010 draws to a close, it’s the time of year that nonprofits ask for donations. Bitch Media is no different; we need ongoing financial support. Usually, we would ask you to make a gift after telling you why you should support us. However, Bitch Media is lucky. We don’t need to tell you why Bitch is important because we can let our supporters tell their own stories. This week, Everett Maroon, esteemed Bitch Blogger, explains why he ♥s Bitch.

I came out of a cultural studies program with new eyes. We know these moments: we can't read the newspaper anymore. Television is riddled with offensive stereotypes and harmful messages for women, people of color, transgender folks, queer people, and of course, many of us occupy more than one of these communities. Our favorite books, when reread after consciousness raising, disturb us because we hadn't noticed how chocked full of lies they are. We ask to see cultural deconstructions in media. Why aren't there feminist analyses of popular culture?

There are.

Creating art is walking through a minefield, especially in a society like this one that doesn't really do much to support said art. And since many of us critics are also creators, we know that we don't want to discourage creation, we want to make it better.

But.