Angelina Jolie is rarely interviewed these days. So this is big news! But also… since we’ve been in pandemic lockdown… photo shoots can’t happen. Or at least they can’t happen the way they used to. Which is why for this interview for Harper’s Bazaar, she’s been photographed by her youngest son, Knox! Click here to see the photos.
As always, Angelina is thoughtful and measured and informed. She speaks compassionately about victims of domestic violence who’ve been made even more vulnerable by the pandemic. She raises awareness about how the fact that schools are closed will have a terrible impact on girls’ education and how that will in turn mean that equal rights for women will be delayed. And she shared a little about how it’s been for her at home with her six children and what she’s been watching and reading during quarantine. I don’t want to excerpt because it should be read its entirety for flow here.
As for why Harper’s Bazaar, you may have heard earlier this week that a new editor-in-chief has been appointed. Samira Nasr is Harper’s first Black editor-in-chief. She told Vanity Fair that:
"At this particular moment in our nation’s history, I am honored to be at the helm of such an iconic brand.”
It is a critical time right now, especially if we want to be part of the change as consumers, we should be asking more of the brands we support. If diversity is to be achieved, we need to ask companies and institutions how they’re represented internally and externally. In media, the content should be representative and the people producing the content should also be representative. As I have said here, about LaineyGossip, we have made strides in inclusivity but we have NOT DONE ENOUGH. I know this and we are working to improve it and we hope you will stay with us as we figure it out.
Harper’s Bazaar is clearly working on it too with Samira Nasr’s hire. And we’ve seen some immediate results because Angelina Jolie’s decision to speak to Harper’s Bazaar, knowing her own influence and fame, could be a sign of what media choices other celebrities make when they need to heard, be it when they’re promoting a project or a cause.
Many celebrities have pledged to actively campaign for more representation. And it’s not just about their own work and who they choose to work with but also about who they choose to engage with as an extension of their jobs. Angelina, with this interview, is setting that example. She is by no means the first, of course, as Brie Larson showed during the press tour for Captain Marvel but as we know, as one of the biggest names in the business, Angelina is continuing that practice.
