Breaking the Mold: Andie Anderson's Journalistic Journey Towards Equality
If Andie Anderson were to break the fourth wall, "Bullshit!" would be the character’s reaction upon hearing that the journalism industry had become inclusive for women— and she’d speak from experience
It’s New York. The early 2000s. Spring is here, and freedom is near. One. Last. Article. And you can leave the shallow topics behind, and ascend the corporate ladder— at least, that’s what she believed.
As the “How to” columnist of the Vogue-esque Composure magazine, the quick-witted bombshell played by Kate Hudson would finally write about subjects she deemed relevant— politics, religion, international news, anything beyond the confines of beauty and romance. However, there was a catch, a condition set by her editor-in-chief before her career could reach its zenith: to write one last "How-to" piece that disguised itself as a social experiment, in which she would sabotage her own love life to warn women about the faux-pas they should avoid (or purposely commit), if they wanted to learn How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days.
Easy. She finds the guy. But her ambition meets resistance. Benjamin Barry, the ad executive portrayed by jaw-dropping Matthew McConaughey, has an agenda of his own; he has to make her fall in love to prove to his boss that he understands women enough to break into the jewelry market. And he has to do all of that in (you guessed it!!!), the same 10-day window.
But this article is not a critique about how cliché the script is (I mean what would you expect from a 2003 rom-com), and it isn't about whether this movie is great or not (although I adore); it is about its significance when we recognize that Andie's arc transcends the romantic escapades we often associate with rom-coms. This film isn't solely about the love story of two characters on differing quests; it is about a female journalist who longs to use her voice to tackle any subject without perpetuating stereotypes. A pertinent issue that persists, despite the twenty-year time-lapse since its release.
“Saving the world one shopaholic at the time”
On their improvised first date, this is Benjamin’s response when Andie tells him that she works at Composure.
She laughs it off, and proceeds to tell him that she’s earned a Master in journalism from Columbia: she’s not empty-headed. She’s in her boss' graces she continues, and when the time is right, she’ll be free to write about “anything that she wants”.
He dismisses her aspirations as unattainable: “...like shoes?”.
This exchange in the film perfectly encapsulates the misconception that people tend to have about women’s journalism: it’s superficial and vain, ladies only care about looks. This assumption is based on the omnipresence of “ads, which had been at the back of the magazine”, and “became [...] the magazines’ content” over time, analyzed Jennifer Scanlon, author, historian, and professor of Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Studies at Bowdoin College. “With that came a shift in thinking from the magazine as a vehicle of culture to a vehicle of consumer culture.”
When examining Vogue's recent covers, the pattern is evident: most feature women promoting something—a film, a brand, an album. It's become more about the products rather than the narratives they tell. Benjamin’s way of thinking is then not entirely wrong, but perpetuates a stereotype. It puts the women’s magazine in this little-to-no-depth box, as if the men’s one was exempt.
“I gave a lot of speeches in bars about how much better the men’s magazines were than the women’s magazines were, and it’s so lame, because they’re not. You open up the men’s magazines and there’s talking about shoes too. They’re talking about moisturizer. They really are! It’s all in there.” Testified the Eat, Pray, Love author Elizabeth Gilbert.
So there is a double-standard. It exists.
But it is not in every female writers' purpose to advocate for change: “I think: do I want to take this battle on, in some way? Do I want to have an argument about this, defending the legitimacy of my work? Do I want to reply to any of these people? No.” Added the best-selling author.
Well, Andie Anderson would be the one to break barriers: Hudson brilliantly takes the role of the female writer who advocates to be heard in an industry where women's perspectives have often been overlooked and watered down. She’s the leader of a new trope; Jenna Rink and Andrea Sachs would follow.
Anderson nails it— in her own way. She takes her week-old boyfriend to a Celine Dion concert, ruins boys-night, makes an imaginary album of their non-existent children and baptizes his member “Princess Sophia”, all for the sake of that one article.
All is fair in love and war, right?
Progress or stagnation?
10 days and a guy lost later (not a spoiler— watch and you will see), Andie finally delivers the article.
“It’s not what I expected,” said her editor in a curt tone. “It’s better.”
But the words that follow are dishearteningly familiar.
Writing about “real” issues isn't what women want; they prefer to read about the latest “shoes” or “dressing for their body type”, the boss specified.
This moment highlights a dilemma still relevant today in women’s magazines. When will women truly be able to use their voices to discuss any subject without being pigeonholed into stereotypes? Instead of confronting the issues, we continue to avoid it: “I was never going to be a chick, you know, doing “chick stories”… The reality is, and continues to be, that the women who write those stories are ghettoized into the women's magazine ghetto.” Said Janet Reitman, who has written for GQ, Rolling Stone and Men’s Journal.
Reitman explained it this way: she refuses to write for women’s magazines, insisting on the fact that female journalists who write for women’s magazines, and follow the route of a “woman-oriented direction”, get stuck in a loop-hole, bound to write surface-level stories— and editors most likely won’t change a product that sells.
At this realization, Anderson left everything behind; not her passion but Composure’s ghetto. Only herself could grant her the freedom she longed for, and she would not conform to the industry's limitations.
A “feminist” movie? Perhaps. As we look back on the fictional journey of Andie Anderson, we must act on our poetic faith and continue to push for a journalism industry where women are free to write about any subject. However, the film raises a crucial question: is women leaving their jobs the solution?
The movie highlights industry issues, but refrains from providing a concrete remedy for effecting change within journalism. Some might criticize this lack of resolution, leaving us on a cliffhanger, without resources to which we can refer… Yet, I believe another ending would have felt nothing but idealistic. Remember; “It’s New York. The early 2000s.” Women journalist's voices could barely make waves back then.
Said “resources”, needed to facilitate change, were virtually nonexistent. That’s precisely the takeaway from this movie; to stir up conversation. To create movements, and initiatives, aimed at empowering and protecting women’s voices.
Fast forward 20 years, changes have indeed taken root. There has been an emergence of collective efforts to ensure women journalists are heard and celebrated, such as the Coalition For Women In Journalism, or the IWMF. As the CFWIJ puts it, these organizations are actively addressing these issues, by “creating spaces for women journalists where they can be nurtured, stay safe, expand their skills [...] and offer support to women from all backgrounds.”
Undoubtedly, the industry still grapples with limitations placed on women's voices, but How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days leaves a great legacy behind, embodying an indicator of progress, and signaling a trajectory toward positive change.
“Now there’s a new generation of journalists who will say ‘Andie Anderson made me want to be a journalist.'” Proudly says Hudson.
This was such an interesting view on one of my all time favourite movies! I hadn't ever seen this perspective, I will have to rewatch asap!
Great work! This is a really insightful take on "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days"! It's amazing how a rom-com from the early 2000s can still spark such relevant conversations about women in journalism.