A male publicist recently asked if I thought gender bias had changed in any way since the Sixties, the Mad Men era in which I began my career as an art director. My answer was that I didn’t really think so. I believe an attitude of male superiority is still pervasive and although it may not be expressed as openly or as crassly as it was then, sexism still exists and, in many cases, is poorly concealed.

Just a few days later, the New York Times published, “For Women in Advertising, It’s Still a ‘Mad Men’ World,” in which a dozen current industry executives (mostly women) confirmed that “gender bias, while often unspoken or acknowledged, continues to affect how [women] are treated at work, whom they interact with and what positions they hold.”

When I came to New York City in 1964, I found it frustrating that I was unable to find a job in an art department of an advertising agency. (A recent graduate of Rhode Island School of Design, I was determined not to become a secretary.)Continue Reading →