Film

Reporter at centre of Ayo Edebiri’s viral Black Lives Matter response speaks out following backlash

Ayo Edebiri looking shocked in a press junket. She is wearing a red top with her hair over her right shoulder.

Ayo Edebiri was shocked by the journalist’s line of questioning. (ArtsLife TV/YouTube)

A reporter who appeared to exclude actress Ayo Edebiri from a question about the Black Lives Matter movement has responded to viral uproar, arguing that she has been “unjustly accused of racism”.

During a recent press junket for Luca Guadagnino’s new psychological thriller After The Hunt at the Venice Film Festival, Italian journalist Federica Polidoro posited a question about “what we lost during the politically correct era” and what Hollywood can expect once the Black Lives Matter and #MeToo movements are “done”. 

Yet Polidoro appeared to direct the question at Edebiri’s co-stars Andrew Garfield and Julia Roberts specifically, leaving Edebiri out of the equation.

In the clip posted by ArtsLife TV, which has since gone viral, the acting trio are visibly confused, with Ayo Edebiri snorting a laugh and Roberts asking her to repeat the question. The Pretty Woman star also says she cannot tell who the journalist is speaking to, as she’s wearing sunglasses.

In the toe-curling clip, Polidoro repeats the question, and stresses again that it is specifically for Roberts and Garfield.

Edebiri gracefully interjects, and insists that the Black Lives Matter movement is far from “done”.

“Sorry, I know that that’s not for me, and I don’t know if it’s purposeful that it’s not for me, but I just am curious. I don’t think it’s ‘done’,” she said.

“I don’t think it’s done at all. I think hashtags might not be used as much, but I do think that there’s work being done by activists, by people every day that’s beautiful work that’s not finished, that’s really active for a reason, because this world is really charged.”

@pinknews

During a press event in Italy for the film “After the Hunt,” Ayo Edebiri pushed back after reporter Federica Polidoro asked Andrew Garfield and Julia Roberts what Hollywood would look like now that the Me Too and Black Lives Matter movements were supposedly “done.” “I don’t think it’s done, I don’t think it’s done at all,” Edebiri said, noting that while hashtags may have faded from headlines, “work is being done by activists… by people every day that’s beautiful, important work… and that work isn’t finished at all.” Andrew Garfield added that both movements remain “absolutely alive.” Edebiri further noted how declining media coverage may distort the perception of progress: “Maybe… not mainstream coverage in the way that there might have been… but I don’t think that means that the work is done.” Polidoro later addressed the backlash she received over the phrasing of her question, sharing a statement on Instagram. “Following an interview, I have been subjected to personal insults and attacks because of a question that, for some reason, was not well received by some members of the public,” she wrote. The interviewer insisted that the question was asked in good faith, and argued that censoring or delegitimising “uncomfortable” questions undermines journalism. #ayoedebiri #afterthehunt #blacklivesmatter #metoo #lgbtqia

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Garfield and Roberts add that the reduction in headlines covering such movements doesn’t mean that the work behind them has been “halted in any way”.

The clip swiftly set social media ablaze over the weekend, with Edebiri’s shocked reaction to the question becoming a meme. The Bottoms star was praised as a “superstar class act” for her “gracious” response, while Polidoro’s questioning and decision to exclude Edebiri was dubbed “insanity” by social media users.

Now, in a lengthy statement posted to her Instagram page, Polidoro has doubled down on her line of questioning and condemned those who have subjected her to “personal insults and attacks”.

“I find it striking that those who unjustly accuse me of racism and consider themselves custodians of justice find acceptable violent language, personal attacks, and cyberbullying,” she wrote.

“I would like to clarify that, rather than focusing on the thoughtful responses of Ayo Edebiri, Julia Roberts, and Andrew Garfield, the discussion continues solely on how I should have phrased the question. All the contributions from those present were reported in full in the published interview, without any omissions.”

The journalist refused to apologise for not directing the question at Edebiri, writing: “To date, I am not aware of any protocol that dictates the order in which questions must be asked in an interview.”

She defended the decision against accusations of racism by stating that she has “interviewed people of every background and ethnicity” while she and her “own family is multi-ethnic, matriarchal, and feminist, with a significant history of immigration”.

She continued: “In my view, the real racists are those who see racism everywhere and seek to muzzle journalism, limiting freedom of analysis, critical thinking, and the plurality of perspectives.”

After The Hunt stars Julia Roberts as Yale University professor Alma Olsson, who reckons with her own past after her friend in colleague Hank (Andrew Garfield) is accused of sexual assault by her student and protégé, Maggie (Ayo Edebiri).

After The Hunt will be released on 10 October in the US and 22 October in the UK.

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