Male News Anchor Wears Same Suit for a Year to Protest Sexism

"Women are judged much more harshly," says Karl Stefanovic

Photo: Courtesy The Today Show

It’s no secret that men and women are held to different fashion standards.

But one Australian news anchor tried an unusual experiment to prove just how much of a double standard there is.

Today host Karl Stefanovic recently wore essentially the same suit – a navy blue “cheap Burberry knockoff” – every day for a year, changing only his shirt and tie, to protest the different standard to which his female co-host’s wardrobe is held.

Stefanovic said he got the idea after co-anchor Lisa Wilkinson did a segment on how some viewers have criticized her wardrobe. Only Stefanovic, Wilkinson and a producer knew what he was doing, which was exactly his point.

“No one has noticed; no one gives a s–––,” Stefanovic tells The Age newspaper. “Women are judged much more harshly and keenly for what they do, what they say and what they wear.”

He adds: “I’m judged on my interviews, my appalling sense of humor – on how I do my job, basically. Whereas women are quite often judged on what they’re wearing or how their hair is … that’s [what I wanted to test].”

Below, check out a time-lapse of every one of Stefanovic’s suits.

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