Sylvia Porter: America's Original Personal Finance Columnist

by Tracy Lucht

In 1942, the directors of the New York Stock Exchange met to discuss a problem. The exchange—its air charged with testosterone, its floor scuffed by the frantic paces of men racing one another for shares of the American dream—was off-limits to women. This, it was agreed, was how it should be. However, it had recently become public knowledge that one of New York’s most prolific and respected financial writers, S. F. Porter, was a woman. If Porter trained her eye on the all-male stock exchange, the NYSE might find itself the subject of some unwanted controversy during the electrified “Rosie the Riveter” days of World War II. But should women really be allowed into the stock exchange? The board finally saw its way around the dilemma and voted on a “Sylvia is one of the boys. We hereby award her honorary pants.” Sylvia Porter (1913–1991) was the nation’s first personal finance columnist and one of the most admired women of the twentieth century. In Sylvia America’s Original Personal Finance Columnist, Lucht traces Porter’s professional trajectory, identifying her career strategies and exploring the role of gender in her creation of a once-unique, now-ubiquitous form of journalism. A pioneer for both male and female journalists, Porter established a genre of newspaper writing that would last into the twenty-first century while carving a space for women in what had been an almost exclusively male field. She began as an oddity—a woman writing about finance during the Great Depression—and rose to become a nationally recognized expert, revered by middle-class readers and consulted by presidents. As the first biography of Sylvia Porter, this book makes an important contribution to the history of women and the media.

Genres: Nonfiction

248 pages, Hardcover

First published November 15, 2013

Reviews

[Wendy · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's unfortunate that Sylvia Porter's name isn't better known these days among financial circles. Beyond representing the working woman before it was in vogue, she deserves at least as much credit for blazing early trails to bring important financial insights to everyday readers. Lucht did a good job of exploring Porter's career from an academic perspective, pointing out both her talent for eliminating financial "bafflegab" (as Porter described it), as well as how she navigated her career in a male-dominated industry--for better and for worse. This is a must-read for anyone wishing to understand the history of personal financial advice, as well as the history of women's career equity.

[Biblio Files (takingadayoff) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sylvia Porter seems an unlikely subject for a full-length biography. She was a personal finance columnist for much of the second half of the 20th century. These days there are dozens if not hundreds of personal finance columnists dishing out tired advice like "save $5,000 a year by not buying that latte before work" and "stocks are a good investment for the long run." But in Sylvia Porter's younger days, there were no personal finance columnists. She got her start as an Wall Street reporter, so she had to know big finance, which she did.

However, as a woman, she was not expected to be able to comprehend such complex matters, so she signed her reports "S. Porter" until she had become such a well-known and respected reporter that the Secretary of the Treasury was aware of her writing and followed it, although he did not always agree with what he read.

Porter became successful in part by writing about subjects that other reporters shied away from, such as bonds. That way she didn't have to compete with others until she was well-established and had a large readership. She also wrote about complex topics in a clear and incisive way. She cut through what she called "bafflegab."

Porter went on to become an industry, writing a syndicated column, books about personal finance and income taxes, she gave speeches and appeared regularly on interview shows. She hired many young writers to do more and more of her writing, and didn't always treat them fairly or give them credit.

It's interesting to read how she broke through one barrier and became extremely successful, although her path is not one that could be followed today.

[Deborah Martinez · Rating 3 out of 5]

By the age of six, Sylvia aspired to be an author. She attended Hunter College and originally majored in English literature, but later switched to economics and finance after the stock market crash in the 20's. She received her MBA from New York University.

Sylvia was the nations first personal finance columnist and a feminist!She broke through many barriers and became extremely successful! Although she had such success, many scholars do not recognize the scope and impact of her career. She authored a hand full of books during her career, and wrote monthly finance articles for "Ladies Home Journal"during the years 1965 - 1982.What I found most interesting about Sylvia was how she got her start as a Wall Street reporter,and her knowledge about big finance.

The book was a bit dry for my taste,but I love what Sylvia accomplished in her career, and the barriers she broke for women in journalism and finance.(The book is a short read 166 pages)

I had no idea until the end of the book, that the author is an assistant professor of journalism in the Greenlee School of Journalism and Communication at Iowa State University, so that was awesome, to find out considering I work next door to her!

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sylvia Porter was an amazing woman, well ahead of her times. She wrote about finance so that the average person could understand it. She stood up for women and taught them how to earn and save. She opened the eyes of Americans to the world of money. Her column became more than that. She became a brand.

Many people helped Sylvia throughout her career in her writing. She was stubborn in her ways and did not give credit to the actual ghost writers she had. Credit where credit is due was not her way. She worked hard and took credit for all that had her name on it.

Sylvia opened the doors to women in journalism. We have a lot to thank her for.