Ask Her More

I’ve worked the red carpet as a journalist and it is, in my opinion, pretty horrible.  The publicists either want nothing to do with you or can’t live without you.  The stars sort of want to answer questions and sort of want to be left alone.

I’m just here so I don’t get fined (courtesy Marshawn Lynch #beastmode).

I digress.

When I saw Reese Witherspoon’s #askhermore post on Instagram, I was intrigued.

I saw it early Oscar Sunday before it caught fire and it captured my interest.  By show time, it was a trending topic.  A great hashtag coupled with A-list star power will do that.

#BBCtrending: #AskHerMore inspires change on Oscars red carpet http://t.co/BONUk1GQf7 pic.twitter.com/Tmn5sfQULs @BBCWorld

— CareyPenaTV (@CareyPenaTV) February 23, 2015

Here is my question: If reporters on the red carpet ask her more, will the actors give more of themselves?

The fact is, when you are asked real questions about real life issues,  it means being present — it means opening yourself up to the reporter, and by extension, to the audience.   It means getting past the Hollywood phony baloney.

The red carpet interviews were good —  at least the ones I saw with the major networks (who knows what the poor local reporters slugging it out on the line were dealing with).

The actors seemed to welcome questions that were more about content than clothing.  I enjoyed learning why certain people connected with certain roles and how those roles may have helped them evolve as individuals.

Young journalists should use this as a learning moment.  The goal should always be to ask good questions and make people think.

I admit, however, I still want to hear about the dress (sorry!)  Fashion is art and an important part of Oscar history.

The point here is that the dress doesn’t win the Oscar, the actor does.  So lets hear about the dress.  Then, lets hear much more about the woman who is wearing it.

In commenting on this movement (I guess it is a movement, of sorts), a friend of mine, a PhD who teaches communication to college students, said her takeaway is that #askhermore just reinforces the idea that women should be valued for more than their beauty and sexuality.

Well done, Reese.  You started a real conversation.