Tracy Grimshaw shares "brutal" sexist advice she received
Tracy Grimshaw has shared the sexist advice she received when she began her first job in the media industry.
The A Current Affair presenter spoke with talkback radio host Ray Hadley on Wednesday morning, and opened up about a "brutal" comment she received when she was just 21-years-old.
Speaking about her first job as a journalist, she said, "Cameramen are quite brutal, quite blunt they certainly don't pull any punches."
"This guy said to me, 'You should marry that rich boyfriend that you've got because you're not gonna have a long career because you certainly won't be here when you're 40'."
The TV presenter revealed that the advice didn't put her off, since she had already decided her career in TV was unlikely to be long-term.
"I'm 21 years old and I am thinking 'well 40 is pretty ancient, well I want to be out the door when I'm 40 I reckon'."
"And then I kinda liked it."
Grimshaw, who is now 62, stayed in the TV journalism industry and spent 41 years on camera, with the last 17 years spent in the hosting chair of A Current Affair.
In September, she announced this would be her last year at ACA, saying she was "tired" from doing "shift work".
Despite the sexism she encountered when first entering the industry, Grimshaw believed the media had "changed" during her time and questioned whether affirmative action was now needed to correct any gender imbalance.
"We should get work on merit," she said.
"We shouldn't get a job based on gender and we shouldn't lose a job based on gender either."
Image credits: A Current Affair