Georgia Love has carved out a damn near perfect-looking life for herself post-Bachelorette.
The 29-year-old journalist is a metro reporter for Channel 10, as well as a regular panelist on a raft of other shows on the network. She also fulfils ambassador duties for Pancare Foundation & Palmer’s Australia.
She’s a regular fixture on the Melbourne social circuit, too. If there’s a media wall present, you best believe she’s stunted in front of it with manbag Lee Elliot.
Of course, some media outlets aren’t interested in any of that. Nup. Instead, they have an insatiable interest in her weight.
Last month, Woman’s Day claimed Love was gregnort after attending her sister Katie‘s wedding. Love quickly denied the rumour on Twitter, labelling it ‘ridiculous’.
https://twitter.com/GeorgieALove/status/978725986110816256
If you feel like it’s Groundhog Day and you’ve read this story before, it’s because you have.
It was less than a year ago that WD ran pretty much the exact same “baby bomshell” story. Following that shmashmorshen, Love and her stellar sense of humour popped up on The Project, explaining she’d just eaten a few too many “zucchini and corn fritters”.
But second time round, it ain’t so funny.
Love appeared on Aussie celebrity pop-culture podcast Shameless this week to go deep on how the constant speculation and discourse around her body affects her.
Speaking to hosts Zara McDonald and Michelle Andrews, Love explained how “pissed off” she was by the “complete conjecture” published by mags.
“All jokes aside, it’s super offensive. I’m not a big girl, but I’m also not a stick figure, supermodel size 6. That shouldn’t mean that I have to feel self-conscious about my stomach.”
“Jesus, I can’t even go to my sister’s wedding – which was papped, by the way – and the one photo they put in print is nothing even about the wedding, it was oh, look, she must be pregnant,” she said.
“They don’t do it to men at all,” she went on,pointing out the infuriating double standards that have long plagued the entertainment industry.
“I mean there are the Bachelors, look for instance at Richie… he got super ripped before going on the Bachelor more than he was on The Bachelorette, I just know that from seeing him personally, but there were never any articles about that.”
When asked if she was prepared to be unfairly scrutinised by the public upon signing up as The Bachelorette, Love says she knew it was coming.
“I had seen people come out of these kinds of shows and be scrutinised in every way. I did think about the fact I probably would have people saying I’m not hot enough and not slim enough.”
“If I’m too big to be the norm, if I’m too big to be in the public eye, then what the hell kind of precedent does that set?” she said.
Too right.
It’s not just the constant media commentary that gets her goat. Surprise, surprise: folks in the public eye read the comments on Instagram too, and it affects them like it would you or I.
Discussing the time her boyfriend Lee uploaded a photo of her only for fans to assume she was pregnant, she said “the most bizarre thing is people weren’t even being bitchy they were like, ooo this is exciting, you’re a pregnant, there’s a baby on the way – quite positively too. But that’s such a horrible, negative thing to say if you don’t know them.”
Love’s willingness to bare all and speak up about these unfair, sexist, boring stories is important. She shouldn’t have to, but the more women who challenge the status quo, the better off we all are.
Dear Woman’s Day, on behalf of literally all of us:
