Wanted: A political reporter resembling the likes of fictional unethical journalist Zoe Barnes.
According to Mashable, Rare Magazine, a political news source aimed at younger generations, recently posted an ad looking to hire a new political reporter who takes after Zoe Barnes, an unapologetically immoral character from the Netflix series “House of Cards.”
“You should be less Paula Zahn, more Zoe Barnes.”
That is a bit disconcerting given how the plot plays out for young Barnes. Spoiler ahead for those of you not caught up to the third season of “House of Cards.”
Kate Mara plays Zoe Barnes, an ambitious journalist working as a general metropolitan reporter for a local political newspaper called the Herald. She finds an opportunity to move up in her career by sleeping with conniving majority house whip Frank Underwood, who is played by Kevin Spacey. The two have an affair and the power-hungry Underwood gives her leads on stories that advance his own agenda. Barnes quickly gets established as a story-breaking journalist as a result. However, when she uncovers more than Underwood wants her to know, he pushes her in front of an incoming train.
Not quite the role model for aspiring young journalists.
Real-life journalists have since taken to Twitter after the listing was posted to criticize the ad:
