Like many women in prominent roles throughout the history of broadcasting, Prime Video host Taylor Rooks receives a lot of unwanted attention.
Talented, confident women in high-profile roles seem to attract inordinate attention. And from the early days of her career at the Big Ten Network and later Bleacher Report, Rooks has been diligent about navigating that scrutiny.
In a recent interview on the Marchand Sports Media podcast, Rooks explained how she maintains her privacy as her career continues to blossom, most recently after earning the lead hosting role for NBA on Prime.
“I believe that you don’t have to comment on everything,” Rooks said. “It’s OK to just let people be wrong. I see a lot of people who feel like they have to, like, lend their voice to any rumor that’s out there or they have to clap back at people online. I just don’t believe that.”
Just last year, Rooks went viral online for a sheer dress she wore to the red carpet for a GQ event. She later admonished the entire mess of critics who weighed in, stating that she did not want to be judged for how she dresses or used as a “measuring stick” for the defense of women, either.
It was just one example of the way both fans and tabloid outlets often discuss Rooks. Over time, she has had to strengthen herself against inaccuracies and judgment.
“Before I got married, I had 10 different fiancées (according to online rumors), and I was fine with that, because I had my own reality,” Rooks explained.
“Because of the nature of what we do, I am around people that are actually famous, and I know the pitfalls of that. Of giving people so many people so much of you that you almost feel like you don’t have anything left for yourself. And feeling like you have to keep up with what people want from you and their expectations and posting X thing.”
At the same time, Rooks tries to present her public persona the way she wants fans to see her. In other words, Rooks said, she doesn’t feed into the scrutiny or inflate her sense of self too much by constantly working to counteract online fodder.
“I consider myself a public-facing person, but I don’t consider myself a celebrity,” Rooks explained. “I think that my life really shouldn’t be that interesting to anyone else. That’s just not how I’m approaching my private life. I think that it is really important to have boundaries, but then … I don’t think people are thinking about anyone as much as people think they’re thinking about them.”
This past year, Rooks posted photos from her wedding that surprised many. She had not announced her engagement.
Rooks explained that she does not personally view “personal milestones as content,” but shared some photos with GQ to create a permanent record of her relationship in hopes of dousing the constant coverage of her romantic life.
Far from naive, Rooks is keenly aware of the way the average person perceives her. Rather than fight it off or embrace it, Rooks merely tries to keep it all at an arm’s length and not engage with it:
“I understand that there is an interest. That just, to me, doesn’t make me think I need to feed every aspect of said interest.”
About Brendon Kleen
Brendon is a Media Commentary staff writer at Awful Announcing. He has also covered basketball and sports business at Front Office Sports, SB Nation, Uproxx and more.