Sexual cues emanating from the anchorette chair: Implications for perceived professionalism, fitness for beat, and memory for news

Abstract

The experimental study reported here employed one of the most compelling visual cues of female sexual attractiveness (low waist-to-hip ratio) to test news anchor sexualization influences on audience evaluations of her as a professional and memory for the news that she presents. Close to four hundred subjects (N=390) participated in this between subjects study. The data reveal variance in professional assessments and memory outcomes across sexualized versus unsexualized embodiments of the female anchor. Moreover, male and female participants varied in their responses. Conclusions are drawn in line with evolutionary psychology expectations of men’s cognitive susceptibility to visual sex cues--here to the detriment of forming memory for news content.