Desperately Seeking Women Readers delves into the history of U.S. newspapers to examine the construction of female readership. Pages designed specifically for women transformed over time as the newspaper industry looked for ways to capture women readers. Harp investigates the creation and collapse of these pages before considering contemporary case studies to explore the recent revival of sex-specific pages. Interviews with professional journalists reveal the difficulties with defining news for women and the problems inherent in constructing newspapers in a sex-specific way. With a clear and descriptive style, Harp offers a fresh, original topic in communication scholarship. Desperately Seeking Women Readers is ideal for undergraduate and graduate coursework, as well as for curious readers of U.S. newspapers or historical and contemporary women's issues.

"...this book is a thoughtful follow-up to Kay Mills's A Place in the News: From the Women's Pages to the Front Page (1988). Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty and professionals." - CHOICE

"It is very readable and well-organized with excellent chapter and section summaries. There are enough notes and documentation to satisfy the academic. Graduate-level students of journalism or mass-media will find this a fascinating study and an excellent example of what can happen at the intersection of media and culture and how economic systems can impact news content." - American Journalism: A Media History Journal, Winter 2008