9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(applause)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Thank you for being here,[br]I would like to congratulate you

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
on this beautiful book!

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Thank you, I think[br]it's really important and significant

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
really because, I think

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
in general in society

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
we tend to undervalue the voices[br]of teenage girls

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and I think you did a really good job[br]of illustrating a lot of strong

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and well informed and important[br]opinions from girls.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And I think that's really really wonderful.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
That's really what I wanted to do [br]with the book

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and the voices of girls[br]and call it "American Girls"

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
because I think it's so important[br]that we talk about girls

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and not only talk ABOUT them[br]and maybe even change the WAY

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
we talk about them, but [br]listen to them

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and hear them when they talk.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Yeah, I think it's really interesting[br]how much you just use

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
the word "girl". [br]like you really owned that in a way that

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
sometimes people are a little hesitant to[br]because it can often feel demeaning

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I think.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I mean, if anybody feels

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
that the word "girl" is demeaning[br]we need to stop right there

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and unpack that because[br]what is demeaning about

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
being a girl?

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
A girl is a citizen of the United States[br]who is an important part

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and an often very vibrant [br]-if you read the book-

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
very vibrant, insightful part[br]of our national identity.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
So, I have no problem with the word: [br]"girl".

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Good, good. I don't think we [br]should either.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
So tell me about [br]-for people who haven't read the book yet

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
what you're doing in this story.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
The introduction did a pretty[br]good job of explaining:

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
you talked to over 200 girls[br]from different states

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Tell us a little bit about[br]what you're working with.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Well, I have written about[br]teenagers off and on

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
for about twenty years, [br]starting at New York Magazine

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
in the 90s and then I came to [br]Vanity Fair in 2000

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Off and on I'll do a story about[br]teens based on something

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
that's happened in the news or [br]some sort of new trend that we're seeing

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I've interviewed a lot of celebrities[br]who are also teenagers

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
that sort of became my beat.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I met Paris Hilton when [br]she was a teenager

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I met Lindsay Lohan [br]when she was a teenager

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
"The Bling Ring" was about[br]a gang of teenage burglars.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
So I sort of became identified with[br]that beat.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
So around 2012/2013

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
we started to see a lot of[br]stories in the news

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
-which haven't stopped-[br]y'know, they continue to this day

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
unfortunately, and since my[br]book has come out, we see them

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
more and more.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Stories that involved teenagers, [br]particularly teenage girls

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and social media.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And really serious kinds of [br]abuses of social media.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
The footage of which would be posted[br]online with comments

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
sometimes comments from[br]other teens

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
but also from adults[br]that were really

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
vilifying and slut-shaming.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
There was Steubenville:

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
infamous case in Ohio with [br]sexual assault and video online.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
There was Amanda Todd [br]in Canada

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
where this young girl was [br]cyberbullied to death.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Now there's a word for that:

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
it's called "cyberbullicide"

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
A man had taken a naked screenshot[br]of her and passed it around

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and she killed herself[br]famously or infamously

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
posted a suicide online[br]flipping cards to tell you

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
what she had gone through[br]and why she was about to do this.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
So these were just horrifying things[br]and they were just all of a sudden

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
bubbling up.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
So my boss, Graden Carter, said to me:[br]"What is going on?"

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
"What are we seeing here?"

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Let's find out. And so I went off[br]and did, first a story

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
on this subject matter. [br]and that became the basis for the book.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Girls really brought me to it[br]because from the very first conversation

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
that I had with girls in Los Angeles[br]about this

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I went out there, y'know, looking for[br]sources, looking for voices

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I typically don't go to [br]an organization and say:

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
"Give me some girls."

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I mean, there are a whole bunch of [br]different ways to be a reporter

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
there's all different ways [br]to investigate something

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and I'm not saying one is better[br]or worse than the other.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
People put surveys online and[br]there's all different things to do.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I'm very old school, I really[br]just kind of pound the pavement.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I take a lot of trains and planes [br]and automobiles

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and run around and try to find[br]girls where they are.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
So I went to - not to stereotype -[br]I went to a mall

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(laughter)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
in LA, called the Grove.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
If you know it it's an outdoor mall[br]I saw some teenage girls

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
coming out of the Cheesecake Factory.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
They had just had a birthday party

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and they were carrying their leftovers[br]and they looked like girls who...

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
kinda like how you would want [br]girls to look in this day and age.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Y'know you want them to look healthy[br]and happy,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and it was a diverse group[br]and they went to a good school.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Y'know, so what's going on in your[br]lives.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Well, from that very first conversation[br]with no agenda from me

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
they started telling me about [br]social media

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and how it was really informing[br]their life.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and this is three years ago.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And they were talking about challenges [br]to friendships

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and challenges to romantic [br]relationships

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and judgments that were made

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and sexualization, which became[br]something that I heard

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
more and more and more about

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
from girls all over the country.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Sexualization, if you're not aware of [br]the term,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
sometimes hyper-sexualization

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
which you know from reading the book[br]or maybe you're a sociologist

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
or psychologist[br]and you're aware of it.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
You should be aware of it.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Because it's a really important[br]thing to know about in our culture.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
What it is is the objectification of [br]women and girls, treated as

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
sexual objects.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Sometimes with girls WAY [br]before it's appropriate at all.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It has sort of engulfed our[br]culture and it's in everything.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It's in toys and media and music [br]y'know, I talk about Dora the Explorer

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
My daughter is 16, when she was little[br]Dora looked like a little girl

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
She was this little square thing[br]with a bowl haircut.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And now suddenly-have you seen Dora?

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Dora looks very different.[br]She's been sexualized.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Why? Why? Why?

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And this is something that you talk about[br]how this has happened

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
throughout human history, right?[br]Sexualization.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
But it's so much more efficient[br]because of the internet.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It's happened before, but[br]if you think that you're seeing more

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
sexualized images of women and girls now[br]than you did, like, say 15-20 years ago

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
depending on how old you might be:

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
it's true, you are.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
There are people, like sociologists,[br]who count this.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
There is more sexualization[br]of women and girls in the media

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Mass media and now on phones, [br]on the social media

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Where girls and boys[br]are spending a whole lot of their time.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
In a very very short amount of time[br]their lives have changed

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and there's a new kind of childhood, [br]a new kind of coming of age

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
which simply didn't exist before[br]because the technology didn't exist.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
iPhones came out in 2007[br]Androids in 2008

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Widely adopted by 2009/2010[br]Social media goes online

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
We're talking about something[br]that's less than ten years

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
just this blip, this little nanosecond[br]in human evolution

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and yet boom. Such an unprecedented[br]influence on our behavior.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
On how we think and act[br]and interact.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I think too it's interesting, [br]early on in the book

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
you talk about how [br]over and over again

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
you would talk to adults [br]and parents and teachers

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and they would express their concerns,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
like, yeah! All these kids ever do[br]is spend time on their phone.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And you have this line-something like:

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
"When pressed, the adults also admitted[br]that they spent a lot of time

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
on their phones as well."

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
There's such a weird double standard[br]where we think we're okay

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
on instagram and checking our facebook

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and whatever...maybe just because[br]we didn't grow up with the internet

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
so it's different for some reason?[br]What do you think about that?

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Very early in the book, actually, [br]so I think it's important to note

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
right away, I talk about [br]the role modeling that's going on

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
with parents and with adults.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It is true statistically that kids, [br]girls in particular

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
spend more time on phones than[br]anybody else

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and this is across socioeconomic lines[br]and across demographics.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
There are girls in my book[br]from all different kinds of places

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and all different kinds of families.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And everybody has a phone.[br]But that's just because, like,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
they don't have jobs, and they're[br]not raising kids and stuff.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I'm sure that every adult in this room [br]would be on their phones just as much

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
if they didn't have stuff to do.[br](laughter)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Y'know? Because it's very addictive.[br]And it's designed to be addictive

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I was hesitant to really say that[br]when the book came out because

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Like, the research wasn't quite there yet[br]and I'm like...well the jury's still

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
kind of out on whether this is addictive.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I feel validated even since my book [br]came out

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
there's been a lot of deep research [br]on this

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and now you can pretty much openly say[br]that this is an addictive medium,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
that it's, again, DESIGNED to be[br]addictive

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
particularly dating apps are[br]designed to be addictive.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And it plugs into your brain the same[br]way that, in particular, gambling does.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
You're sort of...this sort of[br]game theory of

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
putting out something and [br]trying to get a response

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It's sort of like betting, y'know?

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
So, it doesn't seem to follow addiction[br]in terms of drugs so much as gambling

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
although I think there's probably some [br]crossover there.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
But the hand-eye coordination thing[br]is like a slot machine or something

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
If you think about something like tinder,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
for example, where it's just totally[br]following the game theory

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
of gambling.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Y'know, Swipe swipe swipe [br]swipe swipe. I'll swipe swipe swipe

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Do you know what Tinder is, everybody?

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Yeah, how many people here are familiar[br]like have used the interface, I wonder.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I guess it's kinda hard to see.[br]Can you guys raise your hand

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Can you clap?[br](people clap)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Anyways Tinder is a dating app.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Clap for Tinder, yeah!

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
If you're an old person like myself[br]and you haven't used Tinder

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Then - I mean, I've been on it[br]for research - ONLY

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(laughter)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Air quotes "For research"

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
But anyways, you look at someone's face,[br]you swipe on it

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
"Yes, I wanna 'date' you"

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
which really means have sex with you

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
or "No, I don't want to."

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
For a lot of men, and this is based on[br]research that I also did

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
reporting that I did.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
for the book and also for [br]another story about dating apps

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
For a lot of men it's like you [br]cover your averages

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
The more you swipe the more [br]chance you have of having sex

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and so it's like betting.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And then when you match with someone

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
it goes "BRIIING". Your face and [br]their face go "BRIIING" and they

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
actually bump together and [br]there's this sound like "WOOOHOO"

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
So it's like a slot machine.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Right, it's really like a slot machine.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
So I started to wonder-what is that doing?

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I mean it's objectification of[br]men and women, women in particular

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
seem to be more objectified, more[br]sexualized on these platforms.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Absolutely, we definitely want to talk [br]about the dating apps more

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
But I'm a little curious about the [br]creation story of this book.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
You say you went to LA, you did[br]the first interview

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And that was for a magazine story, right?[br]Or was that for the book at this point?

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
No, I had a Vanity Fair story [br]that sort of became the basis for the book

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
The story was called-Oh, I don't write[br]the headlines

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It was called "Friends Without Benefits"[br]

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
"I don't write the headlines" That's fair

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It was called "Friends Without Benefits" [br]and when Vanity Fair put it online

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
it went viral. [br]And I never had that happen to me

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
before because I usually go in the print[br]and I'm not really so much online

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and so now we have more of a presence[br]as a website

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It went online and having a viral story[br]is a really strange experience

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I've had a few now, since then[br]I've been lucky in that way.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Well, the subject matter is just epidemic[br]and it's just everywhere and

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It seems to be something that everyone's

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
thinking about. You start to get emailed[br]on the website

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
if you ever want to talk to me about[br]anything: nancyjosephhales.com

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I have an email function there. [br]I started to get emails, like scores

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and then hundreds a day.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
From parents, mostly, grandparents[br]but also kids

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And not just in the United States[br]all over

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
People writing in Australia and saying[br]it's just like that here

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
We're going through the same stuff here.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And actually, since the book's come out[br]Y'know, I'm not saying this

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
to promote the book-I'm saying this to[br]underscore the fact that this is a global

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
phenomenon even though the book's called[br]"American Girls"

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I've been on the radio in Ireland[br]and all of these different places

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Because I think the reason is, again, [br]the platforms are the same

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
They are the same. Snapchat is snapchat[br]In Dublin and in New York City and in

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
New Orleans and in India[br]where I just read in the Hindu-Stan Times

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
They have, in India now, a terrible problem[br]with girls and cyberstalking

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
What you hear a lot from [br]social media companies

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
their public relations thing that they say[br]is that this technology is wonderful

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and it's causing all of these wonderful[br]connections and it's bringing us all

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
closer together and y'know[br]it's just this magic box that's making

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
our lives great, y'know.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
There's some good stuff about social media[br]Don't get me wrong

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I recognize what it is-and girls talk [br]in my book about some of the

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
really great things about social media[br]as well

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
But before very recently, nobody was[br]talking about the challenges

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and the things that are really, I think[br]very disruptive to a healthy childhood

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and a healthy high school experience.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
So that's...did that answer your question?

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Well, what I was wondering was[br]at what point did you know it was

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
a book? Was it when you were[br]sitting in the mall with your Cheesecake

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Factory bags like "Oh my God, this is[br]huge"

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I think when the story went viral.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
That's when it was-

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It was just like: "Woah!"[br]And there was some resistance too!

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It's weird to me because I've had this [br]experience with a lot of stories

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
that I've done where people in the media[br]-I can think of some names, that I

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
won't say right now-[br]They'll say "Oh, that's not true,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
She's just making it up, [br]It's all exaggerated, Nuh uh, not true."

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Because oftentimes these are people who[br]somebody from social media

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
has called them up.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
They have their own sources, they write[br]about Tech

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And somebody has called them up [br]and said: "Did you see this story

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
that this woman wrote? That's not true![br]We're not doing that."

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I don't know. Whatever. Sometimes[br]There's resistance and I think there's

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
a kind of a frog in the pot situation[br]where people don't really understand

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
that the water's heating up because

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
they're in it.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
So that'll be happening-at the same time[br]I'm getting an email from a woman in Iran

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
who says to me: "My daughter"[br]-well, they're in New York City, but

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
they're Iranian.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
She said: "My daughter met a boy [br]on facebook. She broke up with him

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and he went on this whole revenge[br]porn thing. Tried to ruin her life.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
These stories are all too common.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
What's it like getting emails like that?

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I try to get them to-it's great, in a way[br]because I learn more

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and also, if they have some kind of [br]school that they're connected to or

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
organization that I can help with or[br]be a part of, I try to connect people

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
when I can. I recently got an email-

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It takes you in places you never thought[br]you would go.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Right, yeah.[br]Two days ago I was in Grand Rapids, Michigan

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
A place I never thought I would go.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(laughter)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I'm sort of a New Yorker

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I was talking to the best people[br]these were all people who work in the

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Juvenile Justice Area.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
These are professionals who are [br]probation officers, people who work in

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
the court system and foster care.[br]And they're seeing all this stuff

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
with social media and teenagers,[br]particularly girls coming into the system.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
They don't understand what's going on[br]and they need to tell them

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I learned so much from them[br]just talking to them

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
So I like it, I like to take this whole[br]thing in places I never thought it would go

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and there's been a lot of that[br]in the last few months.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I think really what's so remarkable[br]about this book is that you do

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
such a great job of painting a picture[br]of what it's like to be a teenage girl

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
at Dunkin Donuts at the end of school[br]on a Friday afternoon.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
The Dunkin Donuts scene I thought of[br]recently with all of this stuff

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
that's come out with Donald Trump

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
because here was Donald Trump[br]-and y'know I'm not trying to say you

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
should vote for one person or the [br]other person.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
But I'm just saying, it's been pretty [br]striking the kind of

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
well-they're calling it "locker room talk"[br]that's coming out of the mouth

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
of a Presidential candidate.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I thought of that when I heard the [br]Access Hollywood bus tape

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
-the infamous bus tape-

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I thought of that scene in the [br]Mont-Claire, New Jersey Dunkin Donuts

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I thought of those 13-14 year old boys[br]that I listened to standing around

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
in the Dunkin Donuts just casually buying [br]donuts saying that very same

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
kind of stuff. [br]One of the things that I'm trying to talk

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
about in the book is the way in which[br]this sort of normalization

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
of misogyny-I don't even think I use

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
the word "misogyny" in the book[br]because even 6-8 months ago

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
when it came out, when I wrote it[br]I thought: "People don't like that word.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I want people to hear my message. [br]I don't want them to get tripped up on

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
a word like misogyny or rape culture."

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Thank you Michelle Obama! [br]Now we can say these words.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
This sort of casual misogyny that was [br]being uttered by these boys in this

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Dunkin Donuts. Believe me, I don't blame[br]these boys, I blame this culture

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It's bad for them too. It's not like[br]they're "bad boys"

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
They're growing up in this culture[br]where people like Donald Trump,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Who is running for President, [br]say these things and

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
a whole lot of people say: "Oh, that's[br]okay, that's just locker room talk

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It doesn't matter."[br]I mean, yeah it does, it does matter.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It affects girls...[br](applause)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Right? So here I am in the Dunkin Donuts[br]Nobody's parents are there

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It's where they go in this particular town[br]after school and hang out and

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
have donuts.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I grew up in Fairbanks, Alaska[br]it was a grocery store, so I can relate

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
So they're all pretty little 13 year olds[br]can look 13 or they can look 11

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
they're pretty little and they all have[br]powdered sugar on their face

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and they're eating donuts and[br]bouncing on the couches and stuff

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
no parents around.[br]and they're talking like Donald Trump

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
That was before Donald Trump, so what [br]ran through my mind was like...

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Where is this coming from?

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
The idea that they can't have [br]made it up. They must've heard it

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
somewhere to be reiterating it.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Of course, and I really don't think [br]it was necessarily from even their fathers

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
That's the thing[br]You can have a household where

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
people are pretty careful about how [br]they treat women and are respectful

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and how they talk and stuff but then[br]kids go out into the world,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
young boys and men go out into the world[br]and they see all kinds of support

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
for the idea that this is the way you[br]be a man in this culture.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
The guy on Entourage and the guy[br]on the Wolf of Wall Street