TED: Looks aren't Everything | ESL Video (2024)

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Hi. My name is Cameron Russell, and for the last little while, I've been a model. Actually, for 10 years. And I feel like there's an uncomfortable tension in the room right now because I should not have worn this dress.

00:20
(Laughter)

00:21
So luckily, I brought an outfit change. This is the first outfit change on the TED stage, so you guys are pretty lucky to witness it, I think. If some of the women were really horrified when I came out, you don't have to tell me now, but I'll find out later on Twitter.

00:37
(Laughter)

00:42
I'd also note that I'm quite privileged to be able to transform what you think of me in a very brief 10 seconds. Not everybody gets to do that. These heels are very uncomfortable, so good thing I wasn't going to wear them. The worst part is putting this sweater over my head, because that's when you'll all laugh at me, so don't do anything while it's over my head. All right.

01:10
So, why did I do that? That was awkward.

01:14
(Laughter)

01:16
Well --

01:18
(Laughter)

01:20
Hopefully not as awkward as that picture. Image is powerful, but also, image is superficial. I just totally transformed what you thought of me, in six seconds. And in this picture, I had actually never had a boyfriend in real life. I was totally uncomfortable, and the photographer was telling me to arch my back and put my hand in that guy's hair. And of course, barring surgery, or the fake tan that I got two days ago for work, there's very little that we can do to transform how we look, and how we look, though it is superficial and immutable, has a huge impact on our lives.

02:08
So today, for me, being fearless means being honest. And I am on this stage because I am a model. I am on this stage because I am a pretty, white woman, and in my industry, we call that a sexy girl. I'm going to answer the questions that people always ask me, but with an honest twist.

02:26
So the first question is, how do you become a model? I always just say, "Oh, I was scouted," but that means nothing. The real way that I became a model is I won a genetic lottery, and I am the recipient of a legacy, and maybe you're wondering what is a legacy. Well, for the past few centuries we have defined beauty not just as health and youth and symmetry that we're biologically programmed to admire, but also as tall, slender figures, and femininity and white skin. And this is a legacy that was built for me, and it's a legacy that I've been cashing out on. And I know there are people in the audience who are skeptical at this point, and maybe there are some fashionistas who are like, "Wait. Naomi. Tyra. Joan Smalls. Liu Wen." And first, I commend you on your model knowledge. Very impressive.

03:16
(Laughter)

03:18
But unfortunately, I have to inform you that in 2007, a very inspired NYU Ph.D. student counted all the models on the runway, every single one that was hired, and of the 677 models that were hired, only 27, or less than four percent, were non-white.

03:35
The next question people always ask is, "Can I be a model when I grow up?" And the first answer is, "I don't know, they don't put me in charge of that." But the second answer, and what I really want to say to these little girls is, "Why? You know? You can be anything. You could be the President of the United States, or the inventor of the next Internet, or a ninja cardiothoracic surgeon poet, which would be awesome, because you'd be the first one."

03:57
(Laughter)

04:00
If, after this amazing list, they still are like, "No, no, Cameron, I want to be a model," well, then I say, "Be my boss." Because I'm not in charge of anything, and you could be the editor in chief of American Vogue or the CEO of H&M, or the next Steven Meisel. Saying that you want to be a model when you grow up is akin to saying that you want to win the Powerball when you grow up. It's out of your control, and it's awesome, and it's not a career path.

04:24
I will demonstrate for you now 10 years of accumulated model knowledge, because unlike cardiothoracic surgeons, it can just be distilled right now. So, if the photographer is right there, the light is right there, like a nice HMI, and the client says, "We want a walking shot," this leg goes first, nice and long, this arm goes back, this arm goes forward, the head is at three quarters, and you just go back and forth, just do that, and then you look back at your imaginary friends, 300, 400, 500 times.

04:51
(Laughter)

04:53
It will look something like this.

04:55
(Laughter)

04:57
Hopefully less awkward than that one in the middle. That was -- I don't know what happened there.

05:02
Unfortunately, after you've gone to school, and you have a résumé and you've done a few jobs, you can't say anything anymore, so if you say you want to be the President of the United States, but your résumé reads, "Underwear Model: 10 years," people give you a funny look.

05:15
The next question is, "Do they retouch all the photos?" And yeah, they pretty much retouch all the photos, but that is only a small component of what's happening. This picture is the very first picture that I ever took, and it's also the very first time that I had worn a bikini, and I didn't even have my period yet. I know we're getting personal, but I was a young girl. This is what I looked like with my grandma just a few months earlier. Here's me on the same day as this shoot. My friend got to come. Here's me at a slumber party a few days before I shot French Vogue. Here's me on the soccer team and in V Magazine. And here's me today. And I hope what you're seeing is that these pictures are not pictures of me. They are constructions, and they are constructions by a group of professionals, by hairstylists and makeup artists and photographers and stylists and all of their assistants and pre-production and post-production, and they build this. That's not me.

06:09
Okay, so the next question people always ask me is, "Do you get free stuff?"

06:13
(Laughter)

06:14
I do have too many 8-inch heels which I never get to wear, except for earlier, but the free stuff that I get is the free stuff that I get in real life, and that's what we don't like to talk about.

06:24
I grew up in Cambridge, and one time I went into a store and I forgot my money and they gave me the dress for free. When I was a teenager, I was driving with my friend who was an awful driver and she ran a red and of course, we got pulled over, and all it took was a "Sorry, officer," and we were on our way. And I got these free things because of how I look, not who I am, and there are people paying a cost for how they look and not who they are.

06:50
I live in New York, and last year, of the 140,000 teenagers that were stopped and frisked, 86% of them were black and Latino, and most of them were young men. And there are only 177,000 young black and Latino men in New York, so for them, it's not a question of, "Will I get stopped?" but "How many times will I get stopped? When will I get stopped?" When I was researching this talk, I found out that of the 13-year-old girls in the United States, 53% don't like their bodies, and that number goes to 78% by the time that they're 17.

07:21
So, the last question people ask me is, "What is it like to be a model?" And I think the answer that they're looking for is, "If you are a little bit skinnier and you have shinier hair, you will be so happy and fabulous." And when we're backstage, we give an answer that maybe makes it seem like that. We say, "It's really amazing to travel, and it's amazing to get to work with creative, inspired, passionate people." And those things are true, but they're only one half of the story, because the thing that we never say on camera, that I have never said on camera, is, "I am insecure." And I'm insecure because I have to think about what I look like every day. And if you ever are wondering, "If I have thinner thighs and shinier hair, will I be happier?" you just need to meet a group of models, because they have the thinnest thighs, the shiniest hair and the coolest clothes, and they're the most physically insecure women probably on the planet.

08:16
When I was writing this talk, I found it very difficult to strike an honest balance, because on the one hand, I felt very uncomfortable to come out here and say, "Look I've received all these benefits from a deck stacked in my favor," and it also felt really uncomfortable to follow that up with, "and it doesn't always make me happy." But mostly it was difficult to unpack a legacy of gender and racial oppression when I am one of the biggest beneficiaries.

08:43
But I'm also happy and honored to be up here and I think that it's great that I got to come before 10 or 20 or 30 years had passed and I'd had more agency in my career, because maybe then I wouldn't tell the story of how I got my first job, or maybe I wouldn't tell the story of how I paid for college, which seems so important right now.

09:02
If there's a takeaway to this talk, I hope it's that we all feel more comfortable acknowledging the power of image in our perceived successes and our perceived failures.

09:13
Thank you.

There are no notes for this quiz.

TED:  Looks aren't Everything | ESL Video (2024)

FAQs

What is the most watched TED Talk video? ›

As of April 2023, the leader of the pack is none other than Sir Ken Robinson's 2006 talk, “Do Schools Kill Creativity?”. Standing at nearly 75 million views, this presentation is undoubtedly the most-watched TED Talk.

Why are some TED Talks banned? ›

The talk can also be pulled by the TED curators if they feel the content is questionable or inflammatory. The speaker can ask for their talk to be pulled, which was the case when a very controversial talk was posted, and the speaker requested it to be removed because she had concerns about her own safety.

Why looks aren't everything? ›

It's also important to remember that, as cliche, as it sounds, looks truly are not the most important thing in a relationship, and society's standards are not the authority for dictating your attractiveness. The qualities that lie beneath the surface matter most because that's what makes you who you are.

Why won't TED videos play? ›

Check that firewalls, Flash-blockers, or other plugins (like Flashblock, Adblock or Ghostery) allow traffic from TED.com. Clear your browser cache (http://www.refreshyourcache.com/en/home/) and delete cookies (http://www.whatarecookies.com/delete.asp), then reload TED.com.

Why are TED Talks only 18 minutes? ›

18 minutes, as it turned out for TED talks, was “long enough to be serious and short enough to hold people's attention,” remarked Chris Anderson after Wurman passed the TED torch. “One of the most common (presentation) killers is a lack of clarity,” a particular problem when you're trying to build something not boring.

What does TED stand for? ›

When it was founded, in 1984, TED (which stands for “Technology, Entertainment, and Design”) brought together a few hundred people in a single annual conference in California. Today, TED is not just an organizer of private conferences; it's a global phenomenon with $45 million in revenues.

Who pays for TED Talks? ›

TED is currently funded by various revenue streams, including attendance fees, corporate sponsorships, foundation support, licensing fees, and book sales.

What is the disadvantage of TED Talks? ›

Disadvantages of using TED Talks as authentic material in foreign language teaching include potential complexity, lack of tailored content, and varying levels of language proficiency required for comprehension.

Are TED Talks no longer free? ›

TED.com and our mobile apps allow great ideas to be easily accessible anywhere in the world, for free.

Do guys care more about face or body? ›

Men choose an attractive face, because it more likely represents the reproductive potential of the female, through facial traits such as complexion and aging cues, like wrinkles. Additionally, body standards change over time, and what may be attractive at one stage of life can quickly change to the next.

Are guys only attracted to looks? ›

When I asked my friend Dante about the things men like about women other than looks, he said something rather interesting. He said that most men want to see passion — and not just in the bedroom. Dante said that most men are very attracted to women who have passions outside of sex, getting married, and having kids.

Do men prioritize looks over personality? ›

For men, looks seem to matter slightly more, on average, according to research. However, the men that were studied still valued personality traits like thoughtfulness, spontaneity, and humility.

What is the deal with TED Talks? ›

Our goal is to inform and educate global audiences in an accessible way. Scientists, researchers, technologists, business leaders, artists, designers and other world experts take the TED stage to present “Ideas Worth Spreading”: valuable new knowledge and innovative research in their fields.

Are TED videos copyrighted? ›

Here are some common questions and answers about TED-Ed lessons: Are TED-Ed videos copyrighted? Yes, TED-Ed videos are copyrighted.

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TED Conferences anywhere, anytime

TED Live brings the TED Conference experience to your home – or anywhere you want to watch. Get exclusive access to every talk, including ones that may not go online, and revisit your favorite talks anytime in the on-demand archive.

What is the most watched talk show? ›

1, 2021, the most recent week including syndication, ABC's “The View” ranked No. 1 in Households and Total Viewers (2.1 rtg and 2.849 million, respectively), taking the top spot in all 20 weeks of original telecasts this season in Households and 19 of 20 weeks in Total Viewers.

What are the most popular TED Talk topics? ›

The five most popular topics in the most viewed TED Talks
RankTED Talk topicsCumulative views for topic in top 50
#1Culture562,201,451
#2Science313,253,738
#3Psychology388,453,436
#4Brain333,734,292
1 more row
Dec 20, 2023

What is the oldest TED Talk? ›

In 1984, architect and designer Richard Saul Wurman and his colleague, broadcast designer Harry Marks created the first TED talk for a small audience in California. Unlike today's TED conferences, in which talks are carefully scripted and rehearsed, there were no speeches.

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