Zoe Cruz
The co-president of Morgan Stanley is fired by C.E.O. John Mack after the firm suffers billions of dollars in losses in the subprime-mortgage debacle.

Sexism: Cruz was the most senior woman on Wall Street, widely viewed as a leading candidate to succeed Mack. Her ouster is a huge symbolic blow to women's advancement in the financial world, especially since many prominent men at Morgan Stanley (including Mack himself) remained standing.

...Not: Cruz oversaw Morgan Stanley's fixed-income operations, so if anyone should have been punished for the bank's $3.7 billion subprime loss, it was she.

Katie Couric
Her performance as anchor of the CBS Evening News is widely panned, and viewer ratings for the show plummet.

Sexism: Sexist attitudes may be at the heart of negative reactions to Couric, but they're disguised by code words such as celebrity, perky, and light. "The number of people who don't want news from a woman was startling," CBS chief executive Les Moonves said last June.

...Not: Couric's chatty, good-humored persona was well suited to morning shows like NBC's Today but doesn't play as well in the more serious evening time slot. This has nothing to do with gender.

Judith Regan
She sues after being fired by News Corp.’s HarperCollins.

Sexism: Regan charged that there was a pattern within HarperCollins "of firing high-level women," though she gave no other examples. Her suit also alleged that a consultant to the publishing house attributed her success to her "golden vagina," and when she complained, "nothing was ever done."

...Not: News Corp. said Regan was dismissed for using anti-Semitic language during a conversation with a company lawyer after a publicity fiasco surrounding her plans to publish a book by O.J. Simpson about the murder of his ex-wife.

Hillary Clinton
Supporters complain about her treatment on MSNBC.

Sexism: During primary season, Chris Matthews referred to Clinton as a "she-devil" and "Nurse Ratched," labeled her "shrill" and "grating," and suggested that her political success stems from her husband's infidelity. After protests from women's organizations, Matthews apologized on the air.

...Not: Sure, Matthews used some words that might be offensive. But the point about infidelity could possibly apply to a man in a similar situation. Some argue that the outrage directed at Matthews is an attempt to censor him.

Lawrence Summers
As Harvard president, he suggests that innate differences between men and women may explain the scarcity of women in top-level science and engineering positions.

Sexism: Summers was basically saying that women aren't as smart as men. His comments were inappropriate for the head of one of the world's most prominent academic institutions.

...Not: Summers, who was speaking at an academic conference, was merely exercising his academic freedom. He had been asked to be provocative.