In 2013, Forbes reported the 10 top-earning comedians, and all 10 were men—Louis C.K., Kevin Hart, and Larry the Cable Guy among them. A number of online journalists wanted to know why there were no women on the list. Erin Gloria Ryan of Jezebel, for example, wondered where women like Ellen DeGeneres and Amy Poehler were. Under a “methodology” heading, Forbes explained the process of gathering these data. “To compile our earnings numbers, which consist of pretax gross income, we talked to agents, lawyers and other industry insiders to come up with an estimate for what each comedian earned.” Forbes added a caveat: “In order for comics to make the cut, their primary source of income had to come from concert ticket sales.” In response to that caveat, Ryan wrote: “Okay, guys? That’s a super weird definition of what constitutes a comedian.”

a. Explain how Forbes is operationalizing the earnings of comedians.

b. Explain why Jezebel’s Ryan might have a problem with this definition.

c. Ryan wrote: “If Dr. Dre doesn’t have to record an album or perform a concert to be considered a real ‘hip hop artist,’ then why does Mindy Kaling need to hold a mic in front of a brick wall to be a real ‘comedian’?” Based on Ryan’s critique, offer at least one different way of operationalizing the earnings of comedians.