The 'Today' anchor responds to Franco's statement that he once was called out on the morning show for his selfies, insisting, 'I was just observing that he posted a lot of selfies.'
- Dec 28, 2013
AceShowbiz - Having frequently posted his self-taken photos on Instagram, James Franco has explained his selfie obsession in an article for The New York Times and mentioned "Today" show in the process. "I was called out on the TODAY show, and have even been called the selfie king," he claimed.
Savannah Guthrie, who interviewed Franco on the show in October about his selfie addiction, later responded to the actor's statement. Clearing thing up that she wasn't calling out the "Homefront" star, the NBC News journalist said on Friday, December 27, "I was just observing that he posted a lot of selfies, which I thought was interesting. He's the best, a good author as well. The rest I'll just express in a selfie." She indeed took a picture of herself though it hasn't been posted yet.
In a column on NY Times dated December 26, Franco admitted, "Selfies are something new to me, but as I have become increasingly addicted to Instagram, I have been accused of posting too many of them." He explained that selfie was a way for anyone to get attention.
"A well-stocked collection of selfies seems to get attention. And attention seems to be the name of the game when it comes to social networking," he elaborated. "In this age of too much information at a click of a button, the power to attract viewers amid the sea of things to read and watch is power indeed. It's what the movie studios want for their products, it's what professional writers want for their work, it's what newspapers want - hell, it's what everyone wants: attention. Attention is power."
"It has value regardless of the photo's quality, because it is ostensibly an intimate shot of someone whom the public is curious about. It is the prize shot that the paparazzi would kill for, because they would make good money; it is the shot that the magazines and blogs want, because it will get the readers close to the subject."
Sharing some advice, the Oscar-nominated actor added, "You're safe if you trade 'one for them' with 'one for yourself,' meaning for every photo of a book, painting or poem, I try to post a selfie with a puppy, a topless selfie or a selfie with Seth Rogen, because there are all things that are generally liked."
Previously when asked by Guthrie why he had posted so many selfies, the Harry Osborn of Sam Raimi's "Spider-Man" movies said, "I don't want to post those things. I just look at the number of 'likes.' Like, if I put out a book or something that I like, I get this number and if I just put a stupid selfie it's like ten times (that)."
