Letterman Adds Female Writer to Staff

    by Scott Harris, posted Feb 4th 2010 4:30PM
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    After months of making headlines for his inappropriate conduct with female employees, embattled 'Late Show' host David Letterman is once again in the news for a decision regarding a woman on his staff. But this time it's for the right reasons.

    According to the NY Times, 'Late Show' writer Jill Goodwin has been promoted to staff writer after nearly a decade working on the show as an assistant. While such behind-the-scenes personnel decisions are rarely reported in the media, Goodwin's ascension has gained new relevance thanks to current dearth of women writing for late-night television, a discussion that became front page material in light of Letterman's highly publicized admission last October that he had engaged in affairs with multiple 'Late Show' employees.After months of making headlines for his inappropriate conduct with female employees, embattled 'Late Show' host David Letterman is once again in the news for a decision regarding a woman on his staff. But this time it's for the right reasons.

    According to the NY Times, 'Late Show' writer Jill Goodwin has been promoted to staff writer after nearly a decade working on the show as an assistant. While such behind-the-scenes personnel decisions are rarely reported in the media, Goodwin's ascension has gained new relevance thanks to current dearth of women writing for late-night television, a discussion that became front page material in light of Letterman's highly publicized admission last October that he had engaged in affairs with multiple 'Late Show' employees.

    That announcement was the result of an extortion investigation that began when former CBS producer Robert Halderman threatened to go public with details of Letterman's private life. In the wake of Letterman's on-air mea culpa, many media outlets depicted the late-night landscape as reminiscent of a boys only frat house, a charge only exacerbated by the fact that many of the major network late night shows, including 'Late Show,' 'The Jay Leno Show' and 'The Tonight Show With Conan O'Brien,' had no female writers on staff at all.

    But while NBC can now claim to be an equal opportunity employer thanks to the fact that both 'The Jay Leno Show' and 'The Tonight Show' no longer even exist, the 'Late Show With David Letterman' faces a far trickier situation given Letterman's history. And the fact that Letterman's original show, 'Late Night,' was co-created by female writer Merrill Markoe only makes the absence of female writers on his staff prior to the promotion of Goodwin even more glaring.

    Still, there can be no doubt that the hiring of Goodwin as a staff writer is a step in the right direction towards both broadening the perspective of the show and leavening the male-only view of late night television. (For the record, Craig Ferguson and Jimmy Kimmel each also employ just one female writer, while Jimmy Fallon has three on the staff of 'Late Night.') And while more cynical observers may note that Goodwin's promotion also provides Letterman with an opportunity for positive publicity at a time when he needs it most, we think that view is a bit disrespectful to Goodwin and to the opportunity this provides her and other female writers.

    After all, in the world of comedy, whether you are male or female should always take a back seat to whether or not you are funny, meaning that if Goodwin can make America laugh, then perhaps more women will get the same chance in the future.

    And that's nothing to joke about.

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