Blake Lively’s PR Moves: A Glimpse Into Celebrity Tactics at Work

Tyler Kent | 23 January 2025
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Celebrity Interviews
Inside Ilona Maher’s Controversial Imposter Syndrome Comments

Ilona Maher, the Olympic rugby player, recently found herself at the center of controversy following an interview with CNN’s Christina Macfarlane. During the interview, Maher denied experiencing imposter syndrome, but Macfarlane pressed her on the topic, which caught the attention of viewers. The exchange quickly ignited a debate online.

In this article, we’ll break down the details of the CNN interview and explore the reasons behind the backlash.

What Happened in Ilona Maher’s CNN Interview? During a recent appearance on CNN, Olympic rugby star Ilona Maher faced repeated questions about imposter syndrome, sparking online controversy. Anchor Christina Macfarlane asked Maher how she “overcomes imposter syndrome,” but Maher confidently replied, “I don’t have that,” explaining that she never felt undeserving of her success. Surprised by Maher’s response, Macfarlane pressed further, asking, “How is that possible? I feel like imposter syndrome ruins my life sometimes.” Despite this, Maher stood firm, explaining that her extensive work in rugby—dating back to high school and college—made her feel deserving of her achievements.

Representing the U.S. Women’s Rugby team at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Maher emphasized the dedication she’s shown both on and off the field, including her active social media presence and fan engagement. Despite Maher’s firm stance, Macfarlane continued to push the topic. In response, Maher encouraged others to recognize and take pride in their hard work, saying, “I think people are told sometimes to think they have that. But it’s okay to be proud of what you’ve done, and it’s okay to believe you deserve something because you’ve put in the work for it.”

The interview, shared on CNN’s Instagram, sparked strong reactions. Many viewers criticized Macfarlane for her persistence on the imposter syndrome topic, while others praised Maher for confidently defending her achievements and challenging the societal pressure to downplay success.

Beauty
Ulta Beauty CMO Michelle Crossan-Matos Steps Down: What’s Next?

Ulta Beauty is undergoing another leadership change, according to sources speaking with WWD. Following the unexpected departure of CEO Dave Kimbell and the subsequent promotion of President and COO Kecia Steelman to the CEO position, the largest beauty retailer in the U.S. has parted ways with its Chief Marketing Officer, Michelle Crossan-Matos, who had been with the company since 2023.

Steelman addressed the changes in an email, saying, “At Ulta Beauty, we are entering a transformative year that will require important decisions to drive long-term growth and operational efficiency. As part of this, we have made several leadership changes, as well as adjustments in select field and corporate roles, to optimize our efforts.” She went on to confirm Crossan-Matos' departure, expressing respect and gratitude for those affected and reiterating optimism for the company’s future.

Earlier this month, Steelman had told WWD that there would be no major shifts in strategy from the plan outlined during the company’s investor day last October. However, she confirmed she would not be filling the COO role she vacated after her promotion, and she is currently searching for a new Chief Merchandising Officer following Monica Arnaudo’s planned retirement later this year. Ulta is also continuing its expansion into Mexico in partnership with Axo, the global brands operator, with potential for future international growth. The company plans to open 200 new locations over the next three years while also rethinking its brand matrix to focus more on exclusive products and wellness.

Despite facing increased competition from Sephora and Amazon, Ulta raised its guidance for the fourth quarter after Kimbell’s departure, projecting upward trends in comparable sales and an operating margin that could exceed the previously expected range of 11.6% to 12.4%.

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Entertainment
Blake Lively’s PR Moves: A Glimpse Into Celebrity Tactics at Work

Before a few days ago, I didn’t have much of an opinion about actress Blake Lively. That changed when news broke that she had filed a legal complaint against Justin Baldoni, her "It Ends With Us" director and co-star, for sexual harassment and retaliation. However, I had previously seen a video where Lively appeared to be dismissive toward a reporter who made a seemingly harmless remark about her pregnancy. My impression was that she came across as a bit rude and unnecessarily combative. I saw the video after reading a Daily Mail article claiming she was facing backlash — which, unbeknownst to me, was allegedly part of a smear campaign orchestrated by a PR firm hired by Baldoni to tarnish Lively’s reputation and preemptively discredit her accusations of inappropriate behavior on set.

Much of what we know about celebrities is shaped by public relations professionals who are paid generously to craft and distribute stories that cast their clients in a favorable light and undermine their adversaries. Reputation management is a massive industry, with Hollywood and New York dedicating time and resources to protect a star's image — often exceeding the efforts made for high-level executives or politicians. It's also a cutthroat business, where dishonesty is frequently overlooked, with the excuse that entertainment is trivial and the stakes are low. This environment allows talent and truth to be obscured through the art of the smear.

I got a close-up view of the power of celebrity PR tactics early in my career when I co-founded the website Gawker in 2002. We mainly covered well-known New Yorkers, much like Spy magazine, which famously dubbed Donald Trump a “short-fingered vulgarian.” I also freelanced for The New York Post’s Page Six gossip column. In Gawker’s early months, with only about 10,000 readers a day, we received a cease-and-desist letter from Marty Singer, a prominent entertainment lawyer, demanding we remove an unflattering story about one of his clients. The threat amounted to nothing because we hadn’t published the story but merely linked to it. These were the early days of the internet, and many people didn’t fully understand how hyperlinks worked. Even now, it’s unclear if Singer’s firm knew this and sent the letter simply to try to intimidate us.

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