When looking at Ronan Farrow it would be easy to mistake him for a movie star. Close! But no dice. He is, however, the son of one- The infamous Woody Allen. Being a film buff I am inevitably drawn to crazy characters like that of Woody Allen. He is highly controversial, and yet brilliant; his film accomplishments of much acclaim, his love life of much scandal. It was through this scandal that I found one of my favorite public intellectuals today. Son of actor Woody Allen and actress Mia Farrow, Ronan Farrow is quite an interesting and remarkable fellow. Along with movie star good looks, he was born a genius protégé. He graduated from college at age 15 and shortly after went to Yale University to study law. Before he was even a legal adult he had become a member of the New York Bar and started a hefty career as an activist with UNICEF.
Even during his time in politics, where he worked under Hillary Clinton, his focus has always been on human rights. He was the Advisor for Global Youth Issues during her campaign. Nowadays, he continues to lobby for change through writing articles and has also recently released his own book.
Instead of letting his connections to Hollywood bog him down with exhausting drama, he shirks it off, as he did with snide tweets to Woody Allen on Father’s day saying “Happy Father’s Day- Or as they call it in my family Happy Brother-In-Law’s Day”. He acknowledges the ridiculousness of his family’s antics in the media (his father marrying his non-biological sister) but refuses to participate any further than making fun of the outrageous situation. If anything, he only uses the media attention to strengthen his platform for activism and his fight for human rights.
This resourcefulness has landed him his own show on MSNBC that will premiere soon. His acclaim and praises are expansive; between receiving a humanitarian award for his extraordinary service to refugees and displaced people, and being named in Forbes Magazine’s list as one of the people “on the verge of changing the world”. Having accomplished so much at such a young age (he is only 26 now) is extremely admirable, but it begs the question- wouldn’t his age affect his credibility as a public intellectual? Even if he is a genius and well-accomplished 26 year old, how could he possibly have the life experience to be a wise public intellectual? It seems like Ronan is well aware of this fact and balances his social life and social media accordingly.
Without trying to be someone he is not, Ronan has well over 200,000 followers on Twitter and is constantly quoted on his witty, yet politically relevant tweets. Recently he tweeted, “How many of the Pauls are at the State of the Union tonight? Rand? Ron? Ru?”, making a sassy remark about a political event as well as tying it to relevant pop culture by referring to Ru Paul, the well known entertainer and drag queen. He utilizes Twitter to reach out to the generation that he will end up effecting with his political actions. So he has, in effect, outsmarted his “age issue” of being taken seriously because his intellect and genius wins over any professional critics that would question his experience. At the same time Ronan’s charm, whit, and relatable sarcasm win over the general public closer to his age range.
With his amazing track record, his new political platform on MSNBC, and his huge social following it will not be surprising if and when Ronan Farrow becomes the next most influential person in America. The very telling video I have posted below encompasses his maturity, charm and political relevance. The very first question he is asked in the interview has to do with a time before he was born, and instead of pretending to be a complete expert on the matter, he makes a joke at the fact that he was not alive yet. He then proceeds to give an insightful and informed answer that seems to hold wisdom beyond his years. Within this short interview he speaks out about extremism being more and more present in today’s politics, the need for better communication in office, and buying elections. Instead of approaching these subjects with a completely negative “doomsday” tone, he wraps up his interview with a positive note about “the hope lying in people our age waking up and pushing harder for a more moderate candidate”. I could not agree more with his political opinions or how he carries himself. Our generation should breathe a sigh of relief that Ronan Farrow is playing a part in the future of our country.
Katie's Take 