Pandora (newspaper)
| Type | Quarterly |
|---|---|
| Format | Tabloid |
| Owner(s) | Pandora Publishing |
| Publisher | Pandora Publishing |
| Editor | Pandora Collective |
| Founded | 1985 |
| Language | English |
| Ceased publication | 1994 |
| Headquarters | Halifax, Nova Scotia |
Search Pandora (newspaper) on Amazon.
Pandora (Newspaper) was a Canadian newspaper based in Halifax, Nova Scotia.[1] In accordance with the paper’s women only policy and their mandated vision, Pandora was completely run by women and only featured writing by women.[1] Published by Pandora Publishing Association, the newspaper ran for 9 years between 1985 and 1994.[2] Established in 1985, it was an alternative to mainstream publications available in Nova Scotia. The paper was freely distributed throughout Nova Scotia, as well as mailed internationally upon special request.[3] It included contributions from up to 35 women in each issue, which translated to hundreds of contributions in its 9 year running time.[3] Pandora Publishing Association was able to produce four issues of Pandora per year.[4] The newspaper ran as a not-for-profit, volunteer-based collective, and editing, writing and image and design layout was a collective and communal effort put forward by the publication and its contributing readers.[4] The publication requested its readers to engage with the paper by responding to articles and content as if they were writing to a friend.[5] The paper aimed to be a representation of strength, diversity, pain and resilience[3] of women around Nova Scotia. Pandora ultimately served as a publication where women could express their lived experiences, through research-based or personal essays, and make connections with the experiences of other women.[4]
Origins[edit]
According to local publishing history, the paper was started as a dare.[6] Bethan Lloyd, the coordinating editor for the first 18 months of the publication and later, the production assistant, was interested in starting a radical alternate media source created by women for women that adhered to a feminist mandate. This vision was supported by the two other founding members: Brenda Bryan, who was the contributing graphic designer, and Carol Millet, an advocate of group-based publication work.[2] The idea of the paper was discussed between these three in a meeting which resulted in the activation of the newspaper, leading to its first publication in September 1985.[2] The paper was originally intended to be a yearlong project, but turned into a full nine years.[1] Pandora stopped publication in 1994 for a variety of reasons including increasing external commitments, lack of time/energy, member turnover and a decrease in resources.[3]
Process[edit]
Each issue was produced, first on waxed strips, then on Adobe PageMaker. Pandora was one of the first publications to use PageMaker, and as a result, many other feminist publications adapted this method.[1] The paper was not considered mainstream media, so its associated volunteers personally distributed the magazine by foot, car and mail.[1] To help fund the publication process, Pandora Publishing hosted dances and concerts, as well as sold advertisements.[6]
Content[edit]
Pandora provided information and education for feminists as well as the general public’s interests in becoming more aware of social disparity issues.[3] The content of the newspaper was known for being radical and addressed subject matter that was not presented in more mainstream publications in Nova Scotia.[3] The paper was committed to refusing to publish material that was oppressive or intolerant, as well as encouraging readers to express when Pandora itself did not adhere to their proposed intolerance standards.[4]
Pandora's Letter Policy[edit]
Pandora’s policies changed often and evolved in order to effectively meet the needs of the paper.[7] Pandora’s right to publish letters fell under the guidelines of their editorial policy, which stated that letters had to be written by women and be women-positive, as no oppressive or ignorant material would be allowed.[7] The newspaper preferred to publish letters in direct response to articles of recent concern.[7] If the letter was a response to an article featured in Pandora, the original author would be contacted and given the opportunity to respond if she desired.[7] The letters could be printed anonymously if at least two women in the Pandora Collective knew the name of the responder as well as a viable form of contact.[7] Pandora had the right to edit accepted letters for length and in doing so would contact the writer.[7]
Sex Discrimination/Controversy[edit]
In June of 1990 Pandora Publishing received a sex discrimination complaint that was passed on to the Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission.[8] The paper faced charges after refusing to print a letter from Gene Keyes,[5] a self-employed political science professor[8] and a well-known fathers’ rights activist,[5] criticizing a Pandora article on divorce and single mothers.[8] Alongside this complaint, Keyes contacted several companies who bought advertisements in the paper to encourage them to withdraw funding.[9] Pandora was then required to visit the Human Rights Office in Halifax to discuss the editorial policy of the paper.[5] Pandora argued that to give up their policy for a letter from an angered man was to counter the purpose of their publication.[5] The paper believed that women-only organizations should not be required to apply for a human rights expansion as a means of protection from claims of sex discrimination.[9] The investigator for the complaint found sufficient evidence to support Keyes’ position, and a meeting was set in December 1990 in which attempts to conciliate the case were not successful.[9] In April 1991 Pandora’s lawyer submitted a brief to the Board of Commissions, however the Board of Inquiry was appointed to set the complaint against Pandora and a hearing was held.[9]
The hearing occurred in January 1992; the adjudicator was David Miller, the Commission’s lawyer Randall Duplack and Gene Keys, the complainant, represented himself.[5] Pandora was represented by Anne Derrick.[5] Pandora presented its arguments, calling 18 witnesses to the stand including a feminist historian, sociologists, experts on media, and past and present members of the Pandora Collective to defend the paper’s policy and call attention to the discrimination of women in society, and specifically within the media.[8] In the process, Pandora Collective members were cross-examined and accused of under-representing the views of women as well as reverse discrimination.[8] When the news of the hearing broke, the Pandora Collective was forced to publish under pseudonyms as they began receiving death threats on their answering machine.[5]
In March 1992 the Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission decided to favour Pandora. Throughout the hearing, Pandora was primarily concerned with the need for women-only spaces as a step toward equality.[10]
After the commission’s decision was announced, Derrick and a coalition of Pandora supporters and members called a news conference to demand an apology for the violent language used by the commission lawyer in his closing arguments, such as calling the collective “hysterical man haters”[5] and “radical extremists”,[5] also stating “the paper did not represent women but excessively lesbians.”[5] Feminist groups rallied in defence of the collective, however the Human Resource Commission never made reparations for the statements.[5] In addition, the case cost Pandora 40,000 dollars in legal fees.[10]
References[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 "Pandora – Rise Up! Feminist Digital Archive". Retrieved 2020-04-13.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Halifax Rainbow Encyclopedia: Pandora". gay.hfxns.org. Retrieved 2020-04-13.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 Pandora Collective, “An open letter to Pandora supporters,” Off Our Backs 24, No.10 (November 1994): 22.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Pandora Collective, “Pandora,” Pandora, March 1, 1988, 4.
- ↑ 5.00 5.01 5.02 5.03 5.04 5.05 5.06 5.07 5.08 5.09 5.10 5.11 Sharon Fraser, “The Perils of Pandora,” Canadian Forum, (1992): 16.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 "Radical publications in the Maritimes". Halifax Examiner. Retrieved 2020-04-13.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 Pandora Collective, “Pandora’s Letter Policy,” Pandora, June 1, 1988, 5.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 Herizons, “Pandora Newspaper Defends Women-only Policy,” Herizons 6, no. 1 (1992): 15.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 Pandora Collective,“Sex Discrimination Controversy Revealed,” November 1, 1991, 4.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Off Our Backs,“Canada: women-only newspaper ok,” Off Our Backs 22, no.6 (June 1992): 3.
This article "Pandora (newspaper)" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:Pandora (newspaper). Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.
