Why do women's magazines do dumb things?

I used to be a magazine junkie, but I'm cutting back both due to the economy and due to the fact that they continue to do dumb things to drive me away.  Still, there are a few I get just so that I can pretend I am still remotely hip and fashionable.  

I realize this means having to overlook their photoshopping ridiculousness (Thank you to www.Jezebel.com for exposing it all, especially their Photoshop of Horrors).  And, I've also learned to ignore all the ads featuring 30-year olds telling me that both of us need to look younger - I flipped through 12 in a row in one magazine a few months ago!

Yet, there I was reading Allure over lunch and enjoying it's mindless tips on how to apply bronzer, etc.  I even started reading their interview with Julia Roberts. Now, normally, I don't read their interviews because most of the actresses are 18 years old - how interesting can they be?  But, Julia is Julia which means she's a bit more intriguing and the interview was surprisingly much more in-depth than expected. Wow, I'm thinking, maybe I'll renew this magazine with those useless airline points I have that expire next month ...

But then, the interviewer asked the following question: "You seem to have such a happy, fulfilling life at home.  Why do you still act - is it a compulsion?" 

Kudos to Roberts for handling it in a classy way, but is this what Allure thinks of working moms?  That if they choose to work outside their home, they must be acting irrationally.  [Sidebar --> The definition of compulsion is:  an irrational motive for performing trivial or repetitive actions, even against your will.]  This is not exactly Good Housekeeping or Redbook ...

Would we accuse a male actor of having a compulsion to act just because he has a wife and kids at home?  Puh-lease.  Let's get out of the dark ages.  Women who choose to work, even in situations when they don't have to financially, are neither irrational nor are they bad mothers. 

Roberts is a prime example of why it's a good thing for her to do:  she adds value to many lives both inside and outside of her home.  To paraphrase Roberts' answer "my work provides needed structure to the happy chaos of my family life."  Well put.

I'm hoping to read the rest of the interview, but that question was just so offensive it spoiled one of the best pieces Allure has run in a while.  I guess it's time to let that subscription expire along with the rest.

Comments

[Marina]

HERE! HERE! I am so glad that someone else sees through the fluff they peddle to women everyday!

[Lucky Chica]

Great point! I am glad you caught that. What's even more ridiculous is that it was probably a woman doing the asking! How ignorant we can be sometimes. We can't stay on top of everything - and no one is exempt from making the occassional gaffe - but I'm glad you brought this high-profile one to light.

[Diane K. Danielson]

@Lucky Chica - I do believe that it was a woman who did the interview. And, while it's clear she's not indicting women who work, but it's just frustrating because this sort of slip feeds the culture that all women are meant to stay home and be moms. Julia and Angelina are good celebrity examples of making it work. Let's praise that for goodness sake.

[Rehana]

well, good point! i m glad that you cought, its very hard to be on top everything but we can admire ourself for goodness.

Rehana,
http://www.4magazines.info
4magazines

[Emi]

By a man but excellent:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0-o3go0Fl-w&feature=related

(He's a really good comic.)

[Diane K. Danielson]

Emi - thanks for sharing that link. Used it in a new post for tomorrow!