It was just another day at the office. It was a good day for Costanza. She did not even realize that there was a problem up until her producer waved his arms frantically to get her attention.
However, Costanza couldn’t make sense of what he was doing. She attempted to remain composed, but once she noticed what he was trying to show her, her jaw dropped. She was immediately filled with panic as her cheeks turned bright red.
Conventional Beauty Standards
The Italian media industry is well-known for its plethora of beautiful people. Having an attractive host for your talk show, lifestyle show, or sporting show is practically a requirement to be successful in Italy.
Fashion is an incredibly important part of Italian culture. Thus, it is to be expected that television shows display the beauty standards that everyone loves to see on social media. Even though this is a widespread practice all over Italy, one specific field sometimes questions it.
The Important Things
A lot of people are of the opinion that journalism should be the one field where superficial standards should be disregarded. It’s understandable that they feel this way. The news is concerned with serious political and social matters.
The world is filled with fake news, and in today’s climate, it is of utmost importance to pay special attention to the facts rather than anything else. However, things don’t always work out that way, and it’s easy to understand why.
The Ratings Matter
The unfortunate reality is that even modern-day journalism relies heavily on ratings. Since the beginning of time, television has been centered around superficial beauty standards, and this is especially true in the Italian media television industry.
If you turn on the television in Italy, you’ll most likely find a beautiful woman on every channel. Ratings are what keep television shows alive, and it’s no secret that the more attractive the host, the better the ratings. The news is no exception. Keeping this in mind, we will dive into the tragic tale of a beautiful journalist.
Following In His Footsteps
Costanza Calabrese was born in Belgium; however, she is an Italian woman who graduated from the University of Rome. Costanza’s father, Pietro Calabrese, was a successful journalist, and she wanted nothing more than to follow in his footsteps.
Costanza was a naturally beautiful woman with an aptitude for journalism. She spent years building a successful career in the field, and never in a million years could she have anticipated the humiliation she would face.
Determination
Costanza bravely moved to America for a short period of time in the late 90s to learn from the best - journalist Tina Brown. She eventually qualified as a journalist in 2005 and made the decision to pursue her career further in Italy.
Her journey was not an easy one. A lot of people struggled to see the hard-working journalist behind the pretty face and rarely took her seriously. However, this made her want to prove herself even more. She was determined to prove everyone wrong.
Fighting For What She Deserved
Costanza quickly rose to the top. Costanza committed herself to learn from the best and spent years working at prominent media houses. Costanza knew exactly what she wanted to achieve; however, getting there was not a clear-cut path.
It was a competitive field, but she knew that the only way to get to the top was with hard work and determination.
Success
Costanza showed no signs of slowing down and rose from a journalist to a correspondent. Her career was flourishing, and more and more people started paying attention to her.
She couldn’t be more proud of her thriving career. Once she was promoted to editor-in-chief, Costanza realized that she was so close to her ultimate goal.
Making It Big
After spending years fighting for her dreams, she was finally reaping the rewards. She finally had the opportunity to work with national news networks. Costanza was even lucky enough to be offered a position as an on-air news presenter.
It was an exciting opportunity for her, and she was truly a natural. She was born to be on screen. Even though this was a great time in her career, she would soon learn the harsh realities of being a news presenter.
Perfect For The Job
Costanza was a beautiful and competent news presenter; she had everything required to be successful. As previously mentioned, being attractive is a big part of being successful in the Italian media industry.
Not only was Costanza well-known for her work ethic and professionalism, but she also gained attention due to her great sense of fashion and stunning looks. One fateful broadcast would make her regret her wardrobe choice in the most profound way.
The Day It All Changed
In preparation for that broadcast, Costanza elected to use a slightly revealing but elegant black ensemble. Although she wore a short skirt and black high heels, as she read her reports from behind a desk, it was usually her top half that was in focus.
In that regard, the black, long-sleeved top she wore was more conservative. What Costanza hadn’t paid attention to that day was the fact that the desk she sat behind was made of translucent glass.
She Was Horrified
The broadcast was going seamlessly at first. When the camera panned out, Costanza adjusted her seating position to be more comfortable. She noticed her producer frantically gesturing at the table. As she glanced down, she realized with horror what the problem was.
As Costanza had adjusted her position, she had uncrossed her legs as the camera panned out. From the panned view, since the desk was translucent, she had inadvertently given every viewer a flash of her underwear beneath it.
It Wouldn’t End There
The shame and embarrassment of the moment were almost unbearable. Keeping her bearings remarkably well, Costanza continued as normal and pretended that she was unaware of what had just happened.
She managed to get through the rest of the broadcast in one piece but was dreading what would come next. In the age of social media, she knew that this wouldn’t be the end of the shameful incident.
Going Viral
Sure enough, it didn’t take long for Costanza’s cringe moment to go viral. While Italian media did have a reputation for favoring on-screen beauty, the world was undoubtedly moving away from superficial norms.
As many social justice movements sought positive changes for females in male-dominated arenas, the incident ended up unintentionally adding Costanza’s voice to them. However, before that, she faced many challenges.
A Life Of Its Own
As the internet does, once Costanza’s embarrassing moment started trending, the story took on a life of its own. Immortalizing her shame, the incident led to a flood of unwanted publicity.
As is common with such viral incidents, it suddenly seemed like everyone had an opinion on the matter. While many viral stories have positive effects on the lives of their subjects, as Costanza learned, there’s often a much darker side to the attention they can bring.