Epilogue

Abstract

This epilogue presents an account of working with oral history in a dialogue with young women at the beginning of their careers in the media industries. It shows not only how the present continues to be shaped by legacies of the “past” but also how women are using the past to shape their futures as producers of media. The strength of the connection between past and present was emphasized in women's responses to a questionnaire upon which they underlined key words and used exclamation marks to amplify their message. These and other anecdotes, highly personal and easy to discount as minor infringements on individuals, coalesced to reveal a shared, collective picture of sexist workplace cultures and how they are experienced by young women in the industry today. Nevertheless, women have found, and made, spaces for professionally satisfying work, where varying degrees of occupational autonomy could be exercised.