Margaret Jones (1923–2006) was a trailblazer for women in Australian journalism. A member of the press for more than 30 years, she assumed senior positions at the Sydney Morning Herald (SMH) from the 1960s, earning a reputation in the process as an exceptional print journalist. From the beginning, Jones was noted for challenging head-on the sexism she encountered in the media industry. She became foreign correspondent for the SMH in New York, Washington, London and Beijing, helping to carve out roles for women in serious mainstream journalism. This article traces Margaret Jones’ career as reporter and feature writer with the publishing house Fairfax, as a contribution to Australian feminist cultural history and the history of women in newspaper journalism.
AngelD (1985) The Journalists’ Club, Sydney: A Fond History. Sydney, NSW, Australia: Journalists’ Club.
2.
BakerJ (2015) Australian women journalists and the ‘pretence of equality’. Labour History108: 1–16.
3.
BowdenT (1978) Margaret Jones. In: ABC Radio Social History Unit (ed.) Inside Stories. Sydney, NSW, Australia: Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
4.
ClarkeP (2014) Women in the media. In: Griffen-FoleyB (ed.) A Companion to the Australian Media. Melbourne, VIC, Australia: Australian Scholarly Publishing, pp. 495–498.
JonesM (1973) Margaret Jones interviewed by Hazel de Berg (sound recording). ORAL TRC 1/711, 7November, National Library of Australia. Available at: http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-220836568/listen (accessed 12 April 2016).
12.
JonesM (1976a) Margaret Jones interviewed by Hazel de Berg (sound recording). ORAL TRC 1/972, 30November, National Library of Australia. Available at: http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-220850667/listen (accessed 12 April 2016).
13.
JonesM (1976b) Pressures on the press. Paton-Wilkie-Deamer Newspaper Address, 30March, The Journalists’ Club, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
14.
JonesM (1979) The Confucius Enigma. Sydney, NSW, Australia: McGraw-Hill.
15.
JonesM (1984) Thatcher’s Kingdom: A View of Britain in the Eighties. Sydney, NSW, Australia: Collins.
16.
JonesM (1985) The Smiling Buddha. London: Hamish Hamilton.
17.
JonesM (1994) Margaret Jones interviewed by Ann Turner (sound recording). ORAL TRC 3017, 15February, National Library of Australia. Available at: http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-217186813/listen (accessed 12 April 2016).
18.
JonesM (2001) Personal reflections. Media International Australia, Incorporating Culture and Policy99: 59–66.
19.
LemonB (2009 [2006]) Jones, Margaret (1923–2006). The Australian women’s register, Australian women’s archives project. Available at: http://www.womenaustralia.info/biogs/AWE2175b.htm (accessed 12 July 2016).
20.
LloydJ (2014) Women’s pages in Australian print media from the 1850s. Media International Australia, Incorporating Culture and Policy150: 61–65.
NorthL (2014) Media print news. The Encyclopedia of Women & Leadership in Twentieth-Century Australia, Australian Women’s Archives Project. Available at: http://www.womenaustralia.info/leaders/biogs/WLE0435b.htm (accessed 12 July 2016).
25.
PearceS (1998) Shameless Scribblers: Australian Women’s Journalism 1880–1995. Rockhampton, QLD, Australia: Central Queensland University Press.
26.
PringleJD (1973) Have Pen: Will Travel. London: Chatto & Windus.
SouterG (1981) Company of Heralds: A Century and a Half of Australian Publishing by John Fairfax Limited and Its Predecessors, 1831–1981. Carlton, VIC, Australia: Melbourne University Press.
29.
SouterG (1992) Heralds and Angels: The House of Fairfax 1841–1990. Carlton, VIC, Australia: Melbourne University Press.
