As a journalist, I often write about other women's appearances in print and online, so Millie Bobby Brown's now-viral video talking about the media bullying her for her looks made me stop and think.
In the impassioned clip, The Stranger Things star says: "The fact that adult writers are spending their time dissecting my face, my body, my choices, is disturbing." Watch the full video below...
Brown is just 21, and as my own daughter enters womanhood and an era where her looks have become a conversation point with those around her, I think it's an important topic to discuss.
I'm of the generation where I'm grateful to people who say positive things about my appearance. Perhaps it's down to the beauty-valuing culture I grew up in, but it gives me a lift. And I give compliments to other women about their looks all the time (and genuinely believe what I'm saying).
Reflecting on this, I don't think saying someone looks nice is an inherently bad thing to do. But I find myself wondering, is there is a better way to make people feel good about themselves?
Perhaps I should do as my daughter says and compliment them on their nature or behaviour instead, i.e. "I love how kind, generous, clever, empathetic, funny you are," rather than: "Your hair is so lustrous."
I have also stopped saying negative things about myself in an attempt to socially bond. I used to bat away any compliment with statements such as, "That’s kind but you should see me naked."
Back to my role in shaping the way we speak about women through my job as a journalist.
I hope in my (now quite long) career I've always been kind when talking about celebrities, but I am occasionally guilty of forgetting that women in the public eye have feelings that run as deep as everyone else's and that their beauty and status doesn't immunise them from criticism, however gentle.
© Rosie GreenIt would be sad (for me at least) if we journalists couldn't ever talk or write about the new beauty trends that famous people are adopting, or the dresses they choose to wear on the red carpet. But perhaps instead we can move the tone of the conversation on. Make it more celebratory, fun and empowering. One that increases confidence rather than eroding it.
I've been at the mercy of trolls myself. "Which one is the dog?" was just one of the comments under a picture of me and my pooch in a national newspaper. I shrugged it off. I am used to my looks being discussed and dissected - both positively and negatively.
© InstagramBut I'm convinced if we change the tone of the way we write and speak about women, it will make the world a better place for all of us.
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