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Becoming a Dangerous Woman: Embracing Risk to Change the World
An intimate and inspiring memoir and call to action from Pat Mitchell -- groundbreaking media icon, global advocate for women's rights, and co-founder and curator of TEDWomen
Pat Mitchell is a serial ceiling smasher. The first woman to own and host a nationally syndicated daily talk show, and the first female president of CNN productions and PBS, Mitchell has been lauded as a powerful changemaker and a relentless advocate for women and girls.
In Becoming a Dangerous Woman , Mitchell shares her own path to power, from a childhood spent on a cotton farm in the South to her unprecedented rise in media and global affairs. Full of intimate, fascinating stories, such as an encounter with Fidel Castro while wearing a swimsuit, and traveling to war zones with Eve Ensler and Glenn, Becoming a Dangerous Woman is an inspiring call to arms for women who are ready to dismantle the barriers they see in their own lives.
Pat Mitchell is a serial ceiling smasher. The first woman to own and host a nationally syndicated daily talk show, and the first female president of CNN productions and PBS, Mitchell has been lauded as a powerful changemaker and a relentless advocate for women and girls.
In Becoming a Dangerous Woman , Mitchell shares her own path to power, from a childhood spent on a cotton farm in the South to her unprecedented rise in media and global affairs. Full of intimate, fascinating stories, such as an encounter with Fidel Castro while wearing a swimsuit, and traveling to war zones with Eve Ensler and Glenn, Becoming a Dangerous Woman is an inspiring call to arms for women who are ready to dismantle the barriers they see in their own lives.
304 pages, Hardcover
Published October 8, 2019
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308 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
October 21, 2019
I get to be the first review! That never happens.
I wasn't sure what to expect from this book when I ordered it, but it turned out to be a very entertaining memoir with lots of inspiring mini-interviews with feminist activists in many different sphere.
I wasn't sure what to expect from this book when I ordered it, but it turned out to be a very entertaining memoir with lots of inspiring mini-interviews with feminist activists in many different sphere.
November 30, 2020
Carol Black, former president of Lifetime, has defined a dangerous woman. Her being 'laser-focused on what she wants, unwilling to waste her time, and absolutely clear about what matters and what matters and what doesn't'(274) is a take or be taken attitude.
This is a biography about Pat Mitchell, the first woman icon of television. She served as president of the major studios CNN and PBS. Her productions earned her 35 emmys and 15 peabody awards. She founded TEDWomen and ended her career at her rebranded Paley Center for Media. Along her way to the most dangerous woman in media, she paved the way for woman across media to seize more of the pie. Her personality engendered a new class of woman in upper management. She inspires all who hear her story, including me.
I love the idea of March being National Women's Month. While I was busy this last March with work - picking up cardiac monitor shifts in Barlow's ICU and stoking my fire for medicine as I saw top-class UCLA intensivists save lives on the brink of death by medical and mechanical interventions, adding 2 12s to my 36 hour week, I lived and breathed intensive care, which inspired me to apply to IMG medical school. Bypassing my "late" problem applying to medicine of the last two years, I got in to my dream though through less distinguished but still competitive as other professionals' means- I did a brief women's month the following month, reading on powerful women, talking to women about the state of women in society and what if anything has changed today, and thanking my mom for being a dangerous woman.
Pat Mitchell began life in the womb, as a young female, just like so many others. She loved being in front of the camera. The attention she got from people who had seen her work made her feel valued. When an MBA at UGA was cut short by the birth of a child out of wedlock, Pat became an advocate for woman as she struggled to finish her degree and raise a child.
By her encompassing relatability of a working mother, she held meetings about the difficulties woman face. Women get black balled, and stiffed in their ambitions at every stage. They are not respected to the same level as equally accomplished male peers. Because of this, they lose ambition at each rung on the ladder of success. Middle management sees less women than in entry positions; upper managements sees less women than middle management; presidents and CEOs are comprised of a paltry sub-10% women. This is the 'glass ceiling' often bespoke - a patriarchal stifling of ambition and systemic rot of faith in one's self and their dreams, by the structure of corporate America.
Pat went on to do news, starting in weather and moving to evening news. While doing evening news, she also produced some midnight shows, hiring the staff and organizing their schedules without pay. Then, she got hired to produce and do a morning segment on Boston's local news network. She moved there. There, they told her she should be blonde if she "wanted to be anyone here". Her mentor was a great help in moving her along to retain work and move to prime work segments. By this time, she was still producing and anchoring for prime time television. Her agent got her a salary 3 times what she asked for, after she'd unsuccessfully asked for a raise by saying "the price of hamburger meat is only good until it expires".
After a few years as a network producer, she produced the first woman show on daytime television, Woman to Woman. It was hard to get it approved by networks. The male executives never went for it, but Pat would ask them to show it to his wife and get her opinion, and every time, the wives unanimously uproar their approval. It was a show where Pat, the guest host, and one of her younger counterparts interviewed women on their hard hitting problems.
An episode on sexual abuse brought her to her knees. She was hosting the show, left before the end of the segment, and was crippled in her dressing room. For the next few weeks, she sought psychiatric help to overcome the embarrassment and deep-seeded resentment she harbored over her own sexual abuses with her uncle. She also had episodes on beauty tips, bra sizes, dressing for a job as a woman. She was the original Oprah. She won an Emmy for her second season.
With her newfound respect, she applied for management roles. She produced a national women's day across networks, with a full day, 24 hours of production made by women for women. It was the first time women were behind the camera, and the first time the production crew was mostly women. This gig brought her national renown. She cohosted and organized all the staff and time segments. She was seen as a superstar. Her next ambition was towards creating more advocacy for women in television. She pitched to most major news networks, until she finally got to Ted Turner, owner of CNN. Ted was a man of quick meetings, who talked about why he was famous and successful before asking any questions. Pat was intimidated, but killed the interview with sly retorts after giving her qualifications.
She was given the position to head global documentary productions. A few years later, she was made president of CNN. This was until 2008, when CNN furloughed a majority of their staff.
Pat revived her career as PBS president, doing work along the same lines as what was done at CNN. PBS was federally funded, but locally produced. Across 200+ local networks, Pat had to collaborate content and guests. It was more meetings for funding and agreement than producing.
It was hell navigating through the 2008 economic depression. PBS lost funding, and Pat became one of many short-term woman scapegoat CEOs, who held the helm of a sinking ship. She took the blame for many of the projects that had to be cut, and spoke with those lost departments staff. After slimming down enough of their departments, they let her go. She ended up at the Museum of Radio and Television, later renamed the Paley Center for Media. She decided to make the name change after seeing how little reception the museum got from millennial. Because it failed to encompass the new media of Facebook and Instagram, she lost a critical segment of the population. It now finds a market across demographics.
Pat Mitchell was successful in nearly every thing she did. She advocated for women to take over positions she left. She tried hiring as many women into media productions as possible, arguing with other administration over the merits of her women employees. She is a force to be reckoned with. She is a dangerous woman.
This is a biography about Pat Mitchell, the first woman icon of television. She served as president of the major studios CNN and PBS. Her productions earned her 35 emmys and 15 peabody awards. She founded TEDWomen and ended her career at her rebranded Paley Center for Media. Along her way to the most dangerous woman in media, she paved the way for woman across media to seize more of the pie. Her personality engendered a new class of woman in upper management. She inspires all who hear her story, including me.
I love the idea of March being National Women's Month. While I was busy this last March with work - picking up cardiac monitor shifts in Barlow's ICU and stoking my fire for medicine as I saw top-class UCLA intensivists save lives on the brink of death by medical and mechanical interventions, adding 2 12s to my 36 hour week, I lived and breathed intensive care, which inspired me to apply to IMG medical school. Bypassing my "late" problem applying to medicine of the last two years, I got in to my dream though through less distinguished but still competitive as other professionals' means- I did a brief women's month the following month, reading on powerful women, talking to women about the state of women in society and what if anything has changed today, and thanking my mom for being a dangerous woman.
Pat Mitchell began life in the womb, as a young female, just like so many others. She loved being in front of the camera. The attention she got from people who had seen her work made her feel valued. When an MBA at UGA was cut short by the birth of a child out of wedlock, Pat became an advocate for woman as she struggled to finish her degree and raise a child.
By her encompassing relatability of a working mother, she held meetings about the difficulties woman face. Women get black balled, and stiffed in their ambitions at every stage. They are not respected to the same level as equally accomplished male peers. Because of this, they lose ambition at each rung on the ladder of success. Middle management sees less women than in entry positions; upper managements sees less women than middle management; presidents and CEOs are comprised of a paltry sub-10% women. This is the 'glass ceiling' often bespoke - a patriarchal stifling of ambition and systemic rot of faith in one's self and their dreams, by the structure of corporate America.
Pat went on to do news, starting in weather and moving to evening news. While doing evening news, she also produced some midnight shows, hiring the staff and organizing their schedules without pay. Then, she got hired to produce and do a morning segment on Boston's local news network. She moved there. There, they told her she should be blonde if she "wanted to be anyone here". Her mentor was a great help in moving her along to retain work and move to prime work segments. By this time, she was still producing and anchoring for prime time television. Her agent got her a salary 3 times what she asked for, after she'd unsuccessfully asked for a raise by saying "the price of hamburger meat is only good until it expires".
After a few years as a network producer, she produced the first woman show on daytime television, Woman to Woman. It was hard to get it approved by networks. The male executives never went for it, but Pat would ask them to show it to his wife and get her opinion, and every time, the wives unanimously uproar their approval. It was a show where Pat, the guest host, and one of her younger counterparts interviewed women on their hard hitting problems.
An episode on sexual abuse brought her to her knees. She was hosting the show, left before the end of the segment, and was crippled in her dressing room. For the next few weeks, she sought psychiatric help to overcome the embarrassment and deep-seeded resentment she harbored over her own sexual abuses with her uncle. She also had episodes on beauty tips, bra sizes, dressing for a job as a woman. She was the original Oprah. She won an Emmy for her second season.
With her newfound respect, she applied for management roles. She produced a national women's day across networks, with a full day, 24 hours of production made by women for women. It was the first time women were behind the camera, and the first time the production crew was mostly women. This gig brought her national renown. She cohosted and organized all the staff and time segments. She was seen as a superstar. Her next ambition was towards creating more advocacy for women in television. She pitched to most major news networks, until she finally got to Ted Turner, owner of CNN. Ted was a man of quick meetings, who talked about why he was famous and successful before asking any questions. Pat was intimidated, but killed the interview with sly retorts after giving her qualifications.
She was given the position to head global documentary productions. A few years later, she was made president of CNN. This was until 2008, when CNN furloughed a majority of their staff.
Pat revived her career as PBS president, doing work along the same lines as what was done at CNN. PBS was federally funded, but locally produced. Across 200+ local networks, Pat had to collaborate content and guests. It was more meetings for funding and agreement than producing.
It was hell navigating through the 2008 economic depression. PBS lost funding, and Pat became one of many short-term woman scapegoat CEOs, who held the helm of a sinking ship. She took the blame for many of the projects that had to be cut, and spoke with those lost departments staff. After slimming down enough of their departments, they let her go. She ended up at the Museum of Radio and Television, later renamed the Paley Center for Media. She decided to make the name change after seeing how little reception the museum got from millennial. Because it failed to encompass the new media of Facebook and Instagram, she lost a critical segment of the population. It now finds a market across demographics.
Pat Mitchell was successful in nearly every thing she did. She advocated for women to take over positions she left. She tried hiring as many women into media productions as possible, arguing with other administration over the merits of her women employees. She is a force to be reckoned with. She is a dangerous woman.
March 22, 2020
Mix a little tell-all memoir with a dash of feminist preaching and you get a terrific read by an accomplished woman who broke a trail through the TV journalism thicket. I serve with this woman on a board of directors so I wanted to know a little more about her. Among other challenges, Pat Mitchell worked for Ted Turner at CNN and chaired the PBS Board. I am impressed with her bravery while overcoming her underprivileged somewhat abusive childhood in rural Georgia. She really rose to the top of her game. "When I got to college, at the beginning of desegregation at the University of Georgia, the civil rights movement and the women's movement radicalized me. There is no other way to say it; [they] gave me my voice and a purpose and reason to be on the front lines, and gave me a reason to leave behind all the expectations for girls coming of age in the South in the early Sixties, which never felt like me anyway. So, it started there."
Pat pushed herself past southern beauty contests to pursue a serious documentary filmmaker in the 1980s and 1990s. She became dedicated to telling difficult stories overseas and even interviewed Fidel Castro at the height of his power! Pat admitted her capacity for provocation when summoned to a 2017 meeting of women advocates and asked to introduce herself. She panicked about how to describe her career and blurted, "I'm a dangerous woman." That began her journey of self-discovery leading to this book, TED talks, and all kinds of advocacy. What is your capacity for dangerousness?
“I decided I was willing, at nearly 77, to do that, to step forward and declare myself a dangerous woman. And then, as I begin to talk to friends from all different parts of the world, all different sectors of work and life, I discovered a lot of other women saying the same thing. We are living in dangerous times. And such times require of us to become more dangerous to meet those challenges.”
Pat pushed herself past southern beauty contests to pursue a serious documentary filmmaker in the 1980s and 1990s. She became dedicated to telling difficult stories overseas and even interviewed Fidel Castro at the height of his power! Pat admitted her capacity for provocation when summoned to a 2017 meeting of women advocates and asked to introduce herself. She panicked about how to describe her career and blurted, "I'm a dangerous woman." That began her journey of self-discovery leading to this book, TED talks, and all kinds of advocacy. What is your capacity for dangerousness?
“I decided I was willing, at nearly 77, to do that, to step forward and declare myself a dangerous woman. And then, as I begin to talk to friends from all different parts of the world, all different sectors of work and life, I discovered a lot of other women saying the same thing. We are living in dangerous times. And such times require of us to become more dangerous to meet those challenges.”
March 19, 2024
This was an interesting book that shared some of the author’s triumphs and struggles as a high achieving female in television. The fourteen chapters covered different struggles and triumphs she encountered in different areas of her life, both personal and professional. She shared many good insights that I believe many women still face today.
She uses this book to redefine dangerous. In this book, dangerous is a good characteristic. It means a person who is a force to be reckoned with because she is motivated by or for others, and has strong believes and or values. I especially enjoyed the last part of each chapter where she asks others about being a dangerous woman in a short question and answer format.
The final chapter, the epilogue, is entitled “Rewiring, Not Retiring” and I very much could relate to what she writes. We need to be selective about with whom we share our time, especially as we age. I loved her idea of individuals being fountains or drains. Does an individual increase or decrease your energy? We can pick with whom and how we want to spend our energy because of how we feel around him or her. I do believe that Pat Mitchell accomplished her goal in writing this book: she did reframe the word dangerous. I want to be a dangerous woman!
She uses this book to redefine dangerous. In this book, dangerous is a good characteristic. It means a person who is a force to be reckoned with because she is motivated by or for others, and has strong believes and or values. I especially enjoyed the last part of each chapter where she asks others about being a dangerous woman in a short question and answer format.
The final chapter, the epilogue, is entitled “Rewiring, Not Retiring” and I very much could relate to what she writes. We need to be selective about with whom we share our time, especially as we age. I loved her idea of individuals being fountains or drains. Does an individual increase or decrease your energy? We can pick with whom and how we want to spend our energy because of how we feel around him or her. I do believe that Pat Mitchell accomplished her goal in writing this book: she did reframe the word dangerous. I want to be a dangerous woman!
August 21, 2020
Pat Mitchell is incredible. And not just because of the records she’s set, the doors she’s forced open, or the glass ceiling she’s shattered… She’s incredible because in addition to what she vulnerably shares, she provides practical advice to future generations, as well as implementations of that advice in her own voice and writing-style. She encourages us to prioritize listening, “play it forward,” and always open the door for another woman behind you — but she also actually displays tangible examples in the structure of her book alone: every chapter ends with a bookmark and platform for another woman making great advancements in the world whose message she believes in. Her book is a must-read. I feel enlightened, empowered, and energized after reading it.
November 26, 2019
Pat Mitchell is the real deal. I’ve heard her speak at Omega’s Women and Power Conference, mainly interviewing others. But I had no idea she had such a rich and inspiring career with a feminist thread throughout, always supporting and raising the profile of women’s issues while working on herself and breaking down barriers. There is so much wisdom in this book. She has a section toward the end on mentoring that, having read lots of articles on the topic, I thought was especially valuable and insightful. Mainly that some of us tend to overgive and how to be honest with yourself when mentoring others. I could relate to that.
March 5, 2020
Pat got her career started working in magazines, then moved on to television news in Boston. She has so many media accomplishments. In the 1970s she was one of the first women to appear on tv. In the 1990s she was a trailblazer on cable tv working for Ted Turner. And in the 2000s she broke into the digital media world. 💚🍀 .
Every step of the way, with every accomplishments, Pat’s main goal was to take the first step then to help other women take that step. Clearly an example of women helping women be successful. 🍀💚 .
Every step of the way, with every accomplishments, Pat’s main goal was to take the first step then to help other women take that step. Clearly an example of women helping women be successful. 🍀💚 .
February 25, 2020
Great book by a former president of PBS, CNN Productions, the Paley Center for Media as well as producer of documentaries, cofounder of TEDWomen, the Connected Women Leaders Initiative etc. Not only has she done all of these things but she labels herself a dangerous woman because of how male leaders have viewed her and she encourages all of us to push past the limits society puts on us.
January 31, 2023
This is a well-written book from a woman with a lot of experience and wisdom to offer. It felt a bit rushed and Mitchell left many of her stories in need of a deeper, final reflection. Throughout the book, just when I wanted more, she veered off to advise on mentoring or share insights from a talented, extraordinary woman from her circle.
April 11, 2023
Jan let me borrow this book. It covered the success of Pat Mitchell, first woman president of PBS and CNN. She also helped found TEDWomen. She is a University of Georgia grad and was born in a small town in Georgia. She and hubby Scott now live in Atlanta. She has been a mentor to many women. She also interviewed Fidel Castro. Interesting book!
February 18, 2025
I could not get through this book. I’ve tried multiple times but it’s so presumptive and, in my opinion, puts women in a weak light. As though we need to be “dangerous” to make an impact in the world. If you already have some level of confidence in who you are and what you’re capable of doing…don’t try this one.
December 27, 2021
This book is a call to action. It covers a lot of ground in terms of breadth but not depth. There is also a lot of advice that I believe can only apply once you have a certain amount of money or education. Overall an enjoyable read into an interesting life.
July 18, 2025
La oportunidad de recordar y reconocer el poder femenino a través de la historia de una mujer que sin duda rompió barreras para ella y para muchas en su carrera profesional y que continúa haciéndolo, aún en lo que muchos llamaríamos como la etapa final de su vida.
Bastante inspirador.
Bastante inspirador.
February 21, 2021
Feminist literature isn’t my thing by any means.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews