CRAAP ANALYSIS

Currency (When was this published? Does the above affect its reliability? If so, how?)
This article was published in Cable News Network (CNN) on 6 November 2013. In terms of timeliness,
this piece of news was published 6 months before the news of President Obama issuing an executive
order in regards to gender pay inequality was published. Therefore, this article has not been
updated since it was last published online.

A quick research online has shown that gender pay inequality is still a hot issue that disseminates
across cities and nations. As there are many occurrences of gender pay discrimination, the factors of
age and time will not affect the reliability of the article.
Relevance (What is this issue here? How is it relevant to my research topic? How is it relevant to
me/ Singapore/ the world?)
This article tells us how pay secrecy is the main culprit behind the prevailing gender pay
discrimination issue in America. Many women in America suspect that they are underpaid as
compared to their male colleagues as the statistics have shown that women in America earn 77
cents for every dollar men earn. These women who suspect themselves to be victims of gender pay
discrimination wish they could get to the bottom of the matter but due to pay secrecy policies within
the company, they find themselves between a rock and a hard place as they can face possible
dismissal repercussions and retaliation from their employers if they are found to discuss about their
pay.
This article is relevant to my research topic on gender issues and the role of women, because the
main focus of the article which is the presence of pay secrecy policies strongly reflects on the
discrimination and impotence that these women may feel. What further exacerbates the issue is the
helplessness in the predicament these women are being put in. Its either they choose to confront
their bosses and risk their economic livelihood or suffer the indignity and injustice from the
discrimination in order to protect their rice bowl. While it is true that both men and women are
victims of pay secrecy policies, it is women who are disadvantaged the most, given that it has
already been statistically proven in America that women indeed earn lower than men. To put it in
simple terms, they are absolutely powerless and defenceless when it comes to having a say in their
workplace. The victims will always have to swallow their pride, face the discrimination, and accept
that they will always be on the losing side, unable to bring the ugly truth to light.
This is relevant to me and Singapore because as a woman myself, I certainly do not wish to be a
victim of pay discrimination and face pay secrecy in the future when I enter the workforce, even
more so if the idea of equal opportunities for all is strongly emphasized locally. Hence, I deeply
empathize with the women who are disadvantaged due to gender pay disparity. Despite the fact
that Singapore is a country with strong meritocracies and that the need for gender diversity in the
workplace has always been stressed upon, there are bound to be loopholes and discrepancies.
Hence, we must never cross out the possibility of gender pay discrimination occurring in Singapore
and be ignorant to these issues. In fact, we should expose ourselves to such issues and learn to be
receptive to it.
This article also shows relevance on a global level. All around the world, there are many occurrences
where women feel indignant and discriminated due to gender, especially in the less developed
countries. One example can be Saudi Arabia, where men are allowed to drive while women are not
allowed to. Similar to the pay secrecy policies, these women have to suffer this discrimination and
not retaliate, in this case against its government, given that they may face severe punishments. It
shows how women are always on the losing end as compared to men and how they are unable to
fight for their own rights. Gender inequality holds back the growth of individuals, the development
of nations and the evolution of societies to the disadvantage of both men and women. Gender issues
are not simply talking about womens issues. Understanding gender means understanding
opportunities, constraints and the impact of change as they affect both men and women. It affects
the whole world.

Authority (Who created this? Author Background)
This article is written by Fatima Goss Graves and Arjun Sethi from CNN. Fatima occasionally writes
articles in news websites such as CNN and Huffingtonpost. On top of that, she is the vice president
for education and employment at the national womens law centre, where she works to promote
rights of women and girls at school and in the workplace. She further works to advance equal pay for
equal work, expand opportunities for women in non-traditional fields, and ensure the development
of fundamental legal principles of equal opportunity. As for Arjun Sethi, he is an attorney in
Washington, DC, and a frequent commentator on civil rights and social justice related issues. He is a
member of the Minimum Wage Coalition, a consortium of more than 40 groups, non-profits, and
faith-based organizations, working to increase the wage. He has written articles for CNN and The
Guardian. As Fatima is an expert in the field of womans rights while Arjun is educated and
knowledgeable on wages-related issues and civil rights, both of them are reliable sources.
Furthermore, the opinions in the article are not subjected to a female author alone but also of a
male author. Given that my research topic is about gender issues and the role of women, it is clear
that the opinions in the article are objective and unbiased, thus further strengthening its reliability.

This article was published on CNN news website. CNN is an American basic cable and satellite
television channel and is one of the world's largest news organizations, and its international channel,
CNN International is the leading international news channel in terms of viewer reach. CNN
International makes extensive use of affiliated reporters that are local to, and often directly affected
by, the events they are reporting. The effect is a more immediate, less detached style of on-the-
ground coverage. Furthermore, CNN is proven to be an influential figure in the world of social media
as well, with 12 million followers on Twitter and 12 million likes on their Facebook page. Thus, it is of
no doubt that CNNs large pool of audience, readers and fans and CNNs strong presence in social
media contributes to the reliability of the article.
Accuracy (How accurate is the info? Secondary sources mentioned? Is it backed up by other
sources (Cross reference) How do the above affect its reliability?)
In the CNN article, it is stated that New Jerseys Governor, Chris Christie, recently signed a law
banning retaliation against workers who inquire about their salary. It also mentioned that
economists have posited about pay transparency contributing to greater satisfaction and
productivity in the work place. Numerous statistics have also been stated in the article, referring to
women earning 77 cents for every dollar men earn on a national average while in the federal
government, women earn 89 cents for every dollar men earn and in unionized work places, women
earn 88 cents for every dollar men earn. From my inference, I can say that the article is backed up
by sufficient sources to prove its validity and reliability.
Another news related to this issue was published on Huffingtonpost 6 months after the main article
(attached as an cross-reference). It also reported the occurrence of pay secrecy and the fact that
companies in America punish their workers for discussing their pay. The cross-referenced article also
mentioned the same information as the main article where women are earning 77 cents for every
dollar men earn and in the federal government, women earn 88 cents for every dollar men earn.
Furthermore, the cross reference article also mentioned how Obamas action will make it easier for
women to sue their companies and protect themselves, given that the new order allows them to get
access to detailed data on their compensations. This is in line with the strict order by Supreme Court,
as mentioned in the main article, where more detailed information in terms of corporate records are
required to prove the allegations. With access to the necessary information required, victims will be
able to seek for their own rights easily. Both articles are also consistent as both have mentioned
about a legislation to require federal contractors to abandon pay secrecy have failed and been
blocked in the past. Last but not least, both articles mentioned how government intervention will
outline explicit protections for workers seeking equal pay.
The key information mentioned in the cross-reference article is in strong accordance to the main
article and therefore, this strongly reflects on the reliability of the main article.
Purpose (Why was the info created? (to inform, to persuade, to entertain, to mislead, etc? How do
you know that)
The purpose of this article is to influence the American government to start doing something about
this issue. This intention can be seen where the article stresses on how state laws are paramount to
provide important protection to employer retaliation and how President Obama can and should act
by signing an executive order. It also mentioned how the Paycheck Fairness Check, which has failed
in the past, should be passed to resolve this problem of unequal pay. In addition, it also gave
examples of the different states in USA whose government have already started the ball rolling to
ban employer retaliation. Last but not least, it has mentioned how pay transparency will bring about
numerous advantages like increased employee motivation and productivity, all of which can directly
affect the economy and that work places like unionized workplaces and the federal government,
both of whom have abandoned pay secrecy practices have seen a narrower gender wage gap.
Therefore, I think that this article places its hope on the US government to eradicate this problem.