Kerry Washington is no stranger when it comes to dealing with magazines that use a heavy hand when they photoshop her cover photos. But you’d think by now, since Washington has previously spoken out about excessive photoshopping, that magazines would know not to do it. Unfortunately, that’s not the case with Adweek.
Washington appears on the cover of Adweek’s April 4 issue, and some would say that she’s hardly recognizable.
The actress addressed the cover on Instagram and expressed her disapproval.
“I always celebrate it when a respected publication invites me to grace their pages. It’s an honor. And a privilege. And ADWEEK is no exception,” she wrote. “I love ADWEEK. It’s a publication I appreciate. And learn from.”
But Washington said she was taken aback by the cover. Probably in the same way that she was taken aback when Lucky did a horrible Photoshop job in 2013 and InStyle magazine ridiculously lightened her skin in 2015.
“Look, I’m no stranger to Photoshopping. It happens a lot,” Washington wrote in her post concerning Adweek.
“In a way, we have become a society of picture adjusters,” she continued. “Who doesn’t love a filter?!? And I don’t always take these adjustments to task but I have had the opportunity to address the impact of my altered image in the past and I think it’s a valuable conversation. Yesterday, however, I just felt weary. It felt strange to look at a picture of myself that is so different from what I look like when I look in the mirror. It’s an unfortunate feeling.”
Adweek responded to Washington’s issue with the cover.
“Kerry Washington is a class act. We are honored to have her grace our pages. To clarify, we made minimal adjustments, solely for the cover’s design needs. We meant no disrespect, quite the opposite. We are glad she is enthusiastic about the piece and appreciate her honest comments,” Adweek’s editorial director, James Cooper, said in a press release.
But what does he mean by “solely for the cover’s design needs”? What do the adjustments to her face have to do with either the cover or the clothing that she’s wearing? It’s unfortunate that so many magazines, whether fashion or not, still take it upon themselves to take away from a person’s original beauty and have the world asking, “Harpo, who dis woman?”