Women's News: Is it music's #MeToo moment?

Hello Risers! Congratulations on making it through the week. Here’s what’s on the rise:

Spotlight

Activists hope the arrest of hip-hop mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs will spark a #MeToo movement in the music industry, which has largely escaped the scrutiny that rocked Hollywood and political figures in 2018.

• Less than a year after settling an abuse case brought by his former girlfriend, Combs is now charged with sex trafficking and racketeering. The indictment claims he built "a criminal enterprise" in which he "abused, threatened, and coerced women and others.”

• Experts say the music industry’s decentralized structure and late-night party culture have historically enabled widespread harassment, with little oversight or accountability for powerful figures. In a 2018 survey of musicians, 67% of female respondents said they had been sexually harassed.

• Now, many hope the case against Combs will mark the culmination of a recent surge in sexual assault lawsuits in the music industry, including high-profile claims against Axl Rose of Guns N’ Roses and Jermaine Jackson, to create a unique turning point for musicians.

World

• The Taliban has begun to impose stricter rules on men, leading many to wonder whether they should have spoken up sooner in defense of Afghan women’s freedoms.

  • Plus, actress Meryl Streep spoke at the U.N. General Assembly about the “extraordinary” oppression of Afghan women, saying that a female cat has more freedom than a woman in Kabul. 

• In Thailand, Burmese refugee women are finding community and defying cultural norms through soccer, gathering to play weekly wearing bibs that say “Women Win.” 

• For twenty years, an Italian priest has run a covert operation to help women leave the Mob, building a network of safe houses to protect them from retribution after they escape.

U.S.

• For the first time in modern history, young men in the U.S. are more likely than women to identify as religious. Among other causes, experts point to Gen Z women’s increased awareness of gender discrimination in organized religion.

Business and Tech

• Women entrepreneurs are “hitting a wall” raising capital in later stages. The reason? Women-founded startups receive more venture funding when they have women investors, but since female-led funds tend to be smaller, they often can’t supply the large investments that more mature companies need. 

• OpenAI Chief Technology Officer Mira Murati announced her resignation from the company to focus on her own “exploration.”

• September 18 was the first Disabled Women’s Equal Pay Day, representing how far into the year a disabled woman must work to earn what a non-disabled man made the year prior. 

• Bloomberg profiled Xbox President Sarah Bond, a Black woman and former industry outsider now tasked with changing the company’s traditional gaming business model as players move to smartphones, cloud gaming, and more.

Election

• Gender remained at the forefront of the election this week. The Harris campaign dubbed Trump and the Republicans “Team Misogyny,” pointing to reports linking deaths to abortion bans and scandalous comments about women from G.O.P. candidate Mark Robinson.

  • At a rally on Monday, on the other hand, Trump attempted to shore up his weaknesses among women voters by promising to be their “protector” and vowing women will “no longer be thinking about abortion.”

• Also, Harris outlined her economic plans in a speech in Pennsylvania, including support for the middle class and tax credits for investments in the manufacturing sector.

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Healthcare

• In countries like Brazil where abortion is banned or restricted, women are increasingly turning to Facebook to buy and sell abortion medications. But experts warn that seeking pills on the platform could put women at risk of scams, health issues, and privacy violations.

• A new report found that 210 pregnant people were criminally charged for behavior associated with pregnancy in the 12 months following the end of Roe v. Wade, the most ever recorded in one year.

• First Lady Jill Biden announced $500 million in annual spending on women’s health research to confront gender inequities in healthcare.

Sports

• The final four of the WNBA playoffs are set. The New York Liberty will play defending champions Las Vegas Aces, while the Minnesota Lynx will face the Connecticut Sun.

  • If you’re watching the games, look out for New York Liberty mascot Ellie the Elephant, who is challenging the norm of male-coded sports characters by bringing distinctly femme, Black, queer energy to the court.

• Also in the WNBA, A’ja Wilson and Caitlin Clark were unanimous choices for MVP and Rookie of the Year, respectively.

Culture

• Ellen DeGeneres is back in the spotlight with her new (and reportedly final) Netflix stand-up special, combining jokes with reflection about the end of her talk show and what it means to be a “strong woman.”

• After 26 years at NBC, Hoda Kotb announced she will leave her role as co-host of the “Today” show early next year.

• The newly released video game “Star Wars Outlaws” features women in leading roles, both on-screen and behind the scenes. 

Further Reading