I'm not sure which parts of which theories I agree with yet, but
there is one statement in the article I must dispute. In discussing
the gender gap, this statement is made:
<"The program looks like a '50s game show in more ways than one,"
says Robert Thompson, the director of Syracuse University's Center
for the Study of Popular Television.>
In the "College Quiz Bowl" which *is* a "'50's game show" running
from 1953-1955, and also an analog to the shows under discussion in
the article, women were much more heavily represented on teams than
they are today. It was very common for teams to have two men and two
women. This suggests to me that the current gender gap is exacerbated
by, if not partially the result of, more recent cultural developments.
Tom