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The Bold Type's Melora Hardin on Tackling Ageism, Not Being a Victim 

The Bold Type's Melora Hardin on Tackling Ageism, Not Being a Victim 

Melora Hardin

The actress, who plays the editor in chief of a Cosmo-like magazine on the series, tells The Advocate that ageism goes both ways and everyone can learn from it. 

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Freeform's breakout series The Bold Type, starring Aisha Dee, Katie Stevens, and Meghann Fahy as three best friends navigating career, life, and relationships while working at a Cosmopolitan-esque fashion magazine, is back for its third season.

The Advocate caught up with Melora Hardin, who plays the show's fictional magazine Scarlet's editor in chief, Jacqueline Carlyle, on set in The Bold Type's infamous fashion closet ahead of the season.

Since the show premiered two years ago, Jacqueline has acted as a mentor for the main characters Kat, Jane, and Sutton. But Hardin said that she has also learned from the young women she works with.

"I've learned a lot about the value of social media from them," Hardin said, adding that Stevens has been a wonderful teacher when it comes to technology she doesn't quite grasp.

Hardin, who played a lesbian on Transparent's first two seasons and who many TV fans know from her turn on The Office, also weighed in on ageism in culture and how her character is facing it in season 3.

"The conversation of ageism goes both ways. It's important for people to recognize that youth and exuberance is valuable just as life experience is valuable," Hardin said.

"Jacqueline has felt pushback for her age and gender, but more for her, she's not a victim. It's one of the greatest things about her personality -- that she was victimized," Hardin said. "At the end of season 1 that was revealed [in the "Carry the Weight" episode about sexual assault]. But she does not take that on as her identity."

Watch the video below to find out what Hardin is most excited about coming up in season 3.

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Tracy E. Gilchrist

Tracy E. Gilchrist is the VP of Editorial and Special Projects at equalpride. A media veteran, she writes about the intersections of LGBTQ+ equality and pop culture. Previously, she was the editor-in-chief of The Advocate and the first feminism editor for the 55-year-old brand. In 2017, she launched the company's first podcast, The Advocates. She is an experienced broadcast interviewer, panel moderator, and public speaker who has delivered her talk, "Pandora's Box to Pose: Game-changing Visibility in Film and TV," at universities throughout the country.
Tracy E. Gilchrist is the VP of Editorial and Special Projects at equalpride. A media veteran, she writes about the intersections of LGBTQ+ equality and pop culture. Previously, she was the editor-in-chief of The Advocate and the first feminism editor for the 55-year-old brand. In 2017, she launched the company's first podcast, The Advocates. She is an experienced broadcast interviewer, panel moderator, and public speaker who has delivered her talk, "Pandora's Box to Pose: Game-changing Visibility in Film and TV," at universities throughout the country.