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Her Media Diary Episode 23: "Need for Female Pedagogy" with Prof Kim Fox
13 Plays6 months ago
Kim Fox is a Professor of Practice in the Department of Journalism and Mass Communication (JRMC) at The American University in Cairo (AUC) Egypt. She primarily teaches Audio Production and other journalism courses, and her research interests include Podcasting, Audio, Radio, Media Representation, Teaching with Technology, and Social Media.
Her story speaks to media professionals who have either transitioned or are planning to transition into academia just to transfer the knowledge they’ve gathered over the years.
She suggests the need for female pedagogy around teaching what is obtainable in the industry to give students up-to-date knowledge of the contemporary media.
Subscribe to Her Media Diary now on your favourite podcasting platform https://linktr.ee/hermediadiary
Learn about African Women in Media at https://africanwomeninmedia.com
List of Organisations/Resources to Support Gender Researchers/ Women in Academia
§ Gender Identity Research and Education Society (GIRES)
§ International Center for Research on Women
§ European Institute for Gender Equality
§ UN Women
§ Forum for African Women Educationalists (FAWE)
University Policies and Grievance Procedures (Available in different tertiary institutions).
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Transcript
Salary Disparity Lawsuit in Buffalo
00:00:07
Speaker
When I worked in Buffalo, I filed a lawsuit against them for salary disparity because there's a guy who's my co-host. And when we found out what the salaries were, I'm like, yeah, there's a big difference. It's not a slight difference. It's a big difference. So I'm like, yeah, why is this? And they really couldn't come up with a reason. And when I went to an attorney.
00:00:25
Speaker
It's just like there is no reason except for gender. There's a gender disparity.
Kim's Farewell Party Revelations
00:00:29
Speaker
So then when I get to Cleveland and I'm in this researcher position and not being a producer salary, though, that's what I'm doing, it wasn't until I left. You won't believe this. When I left, they're having a farewell party for me. The chief financial officer comes up to me. He's like, Kim, I'm so glad you're leaving. You have the lowest salary in the company. Whoa.
Vision of Gender Equality in Media
00:00:55
Speaker
Imagine a world where we have gender equality and equity in and through the media. That is our vision and our mission at African Women in Media. I'm Dr.
Kim Fox's Journey from Akron to Cairo
00:01:07
Speaker
Yemisia Kimbabola and this is Her Media Diary, a podcast that captures the lived experiences of African women working in media industry.
00:01:16
Speaker
On today's show, I'm excited to have Kim Fox, a professor of practice in the Department of Journalism and Mass Communication at the American University in Cairo, Egypt, and a veteran in the world of radio and audio production.
00:01:32
Speaker
Professor Fox shares her life story from the streets of Akron, Hawaii to the academic halls in Cairo and how her passion for audio led her from being a voice on black radio stations in the US to becoming an influential educator shaping the future of podcasting and audio.
African Women Academics Discuss Gender Studies
00:01:52
Speaker
Throughout this series, I am in conversation with African women academics in the field of media and gender studies. Discussing our experiences, and I say our because I'm also an academic, our experiences navigating academia, teaching and researching gender, challenges we face and how we've managed to navigate our way despite these hurdles.
00:02:14
Speaker
By inviting these voices into conversation, we hope to provide solutions to break down barriers faced by African women in media education.
Influence of Akron Roots on Kim's Passion
00:02:25
Speaker
So it's great to have you on the call, Professor Kim Fox. I think we first engaged when we were planning our 2021 conference. If you remember, you kind of organised the panel, didn't you?
00:02:39
Speaker
It was so nice. Thank you. Thank you. It's great to have you on the podcast. So I often start this interview by trying to get to know the person I'm speaking to, their histories, their background. So from the earliest memories, tell us about Kim Fox.
00:02:54
Speaker
I don't know about the earliest memories, but I'm American. I'm from the United States. I was born and raised in a, I don't think it's a small town, but some people think it's a small town, Akron, Ohio. A lot of people don't know that it's the rubber capital of the world. A lot of the major rubber manufacturers, Goodyear, Firestone are all headquartered in my hometown. So that's kind of a cool thing.
00:03:22
Speaker
That's great. So what was it like growing up there? I mean, it was a very working class. Again, you've got these rubber factories. So that was kind of the city's history. A very strong black community, which is pretty much my growing up, hanging out and doing cookouts, family gatherings, music, lots of culture and arts and dancing and things like that.
00:03:44
Speaker
So it was a good growing up and the city has since transformed, but it's where I got my interest in radio and audio. Listening to the radio growing up, going to concerts and just having that, no matter what the family circumstance was, there was always music. There was always something that brought people together.
Family's Factory Work vs. Kim's Career
00:04:06
Speaker
So tell me more about the family dynamics and those experiences back in the day. I mean, it's typical family dynamics. My dad worked in a rubber factory and so did my granddad on my father's side. On my mom's side, they were, I guess they were more like entrepreneurs. Everyone just kind of did different kinds of jobs. I mean, it wasn't until later that I learned that my mom's father had his own asphalt company.
00:04:33
Speaker
which is kind of like, like, really? How do you get into that and make your way into that field because it's so specific and so labor intense? And anyway, that's kind of like the family dynamics, but that doesn't really
00:04:45
Speaker
tell you like, well, how did I get, like, no one did what I'm doing. I'm not following that family legacy of what. Like, my mom and my grandmother are seamstresses and are really good at sewing. And sadly, I didn't pick up that skill set, which I think is an amazing skill set to have.
Kim's Radio Passion Ignites
00:05:02
Speaker
But my mom could just like look at a dress and go and make a pattern out of newspaper.
00:05:07
Speaker
Wow. And it's just like, who does that? Like off the top of your head, you can kind of look at this. And I'm just like, why didn't I pick up that skill? That's an amazing skill.
00:05:17
Speaker
Absolutely. So where did your love for audio and radio start from? Just from listening to the radio, which is kind of interesting because like, yeah, that's what my friends did as well. But I don't, obviously they didn't have the ambition to say, Oh, I want to do that too. Um, I mean, initially I wanted to do TV producing, uh, which I've done a little bit of, I've done a lot of radio producing. So, you know, it all, I kind of feel like I've done what I said I would do and I've done it because I want to do it, not because I said I was going to do what I have
Unexpected Media Passion in High School
00:05:47
Speaker
to do it.
00:05:47
Speaker
But that's the thing that I like to do is to do the producing to do the radio and the audio stuff Yeah, so how did you get started though? Like what was the journey to kind of get into where you are now? Ah, yeah in my high school We had a program. It's like a career program and they had many areas you could go into law or to business you could go into communication and
00:06:11
Speaker
And I say law and business because that was my one and two and I didn't get my one and two and I ended up getting communication. I was like, that's a bummer. Like here I'm stuck in the thing, the third thing on my list. But it ended up being that gift that keeps giving back because our teacher for that course, for that program was really into it.
00:06:30
Speaker
And it was just like, yeah, we're going to do, we have a radio station here, like in the high school, we had a radio station. They were like, we're going to give you a volunteer op. We're going to expose you to all these careers in this field. You're going to make videos and films. And it was just like, oh, okay. And I ended up doing really well in that program. And so that was the catalyst to say, like, I have these opportunities and I know what kind of careers can stem from this.