The Importance of Being Andy Cohen

Andrew (Andy) Cohen is one of the most influential figures from the entertainment industry, in my opinion. The Bravo network in the late 1990s was more about performing arts, independent and classic films that was more toward the arts culture. In the 2000s, they changed their format to more of a reality television format. When Andy Cohen started at Bravo as the Vice President of Original Programming and he oversaw some of the best-unscripted series on television. What made Andy beneficial to Bravo was that he loved television shows. When I read his book, “Most Talkative: Stories from the Frontlines of Pop Culture” and he wrote about his love of soap operas growing up. I realized that “The Real Housewives Franchise” way a throwback to the soap operas that Andy grew up watching. What he did was take something he loved and he added a twist that made it his own.

What I like about Andy Cohen is he’s a fan of pop culture and he embraces it. He was such a fan of his own shows that he started a blog. One of the reasons viewers like him is because he is much of a fan of the show just like the audience is. He now has his own late night talk, "Watch What Happens Live", show where some of the guests on the show are people who he became fascinated with growing up. The whole style of the show is like the viewers are in the room as well. He has the drinking games that have viewer participation and he has the “plead the fifth” game where he’ll ask his guests questions that no one else would dare to ask. The late night show is much of a fan participation show because he’s much of a fan of the guests just like we are.

            As of right now, Andy Cohen relinquished his job at Bravo to focus more on his late night show and The Real Housewives franchise. He formed the production company Most Talkative, where he will be producing more content for Bravo and NBC.  Although he is no longer in charge of programming at Bravo, he will always be the face of the Bravo. With changing their television format to reality television, Andy and some of the Bravo shows have become a staple in the same pop culture he grew up fascinated with.

Ted Talks:Sheryl Sandberg

The Ted speaker chose was fromSheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook and author of Lean In. Sheryl is speaking about why there are not a lot of females aspiring to become a leader. She spoke about when she had a meeting and asked a gentleman where the women’s bathroom is and no one knew where it was located. She realized that there weren’t a lot of females in leadership positions because this was a simple question that couldn’t be answered. She gave women 3 pieces of advice: Have women sit at the table, Make your partner a real partner, and don’t leave before you leave. This speech has made me look at the female leadership position in the entertainment industry.

            The first piece of advice she gave was to “have women sit at the table more”.  She sees that not a lot of females sit in during meetings and volunteer for more opportunities. She gave a story about a business meeting with a male who had two equal ranking partners who were female. These two women did not sit at the table and sat closer to the wall. I realized that for future endeavors that I am passionate about I would have to make sure I am involved and participate in meetings. 

            Sheryl’s second piece of advice was to “make your partner a real partner”. The example she used is the female CEO who works long hours and her husband attending Mommy and Me classes. The class is comprised of just moms and that none of them would befriend the father. She found that when both spouses have equal responsibility and earnings the divorce rate was lower by half.  This advice is very useful for husband and myself because we are going into the same industry and will be creating our own business as well. For the marriage to work and avoid any issues, we would have to make sure we share the same responsibilities at home and at work.

            The third piece of advice is “don’t leave before you leave”. Sheryl has noticed that many females think too much into the future and don’t look for new work opportunities. She has said, that most females think about trying to have children and don’t want to get new projects even though it is not something that is not happening in the near future. When hearing that story, I think about all the opportunities I volunteer or take on without thinking too much into the future.

            Watching Sheryl’s Sandberg’s presentation makes me realize that there are not very much females in leadership positions. I’ve learned that I have to negotiate and work just as hard as anyone else. I want to be able inspire and mentor females who want to enter the entertainment business like Sherry Lansing, who was the first female studio head. Sherry Lansing and Sheryl Sandberg have taught me to be vocal and express your ideas and keep raising your hand for questions or opportunities. Sheryl’s speech has inspired me to keep striving towards my goals and that having a family shouldn’t stop me from being active in the workplace.