Angelina Jolie hints at move into politics

Hollywood actress Angelina Jolie has hinted that she is considering a move into politics in the future.

In an interview on the BBC’s Today programme, she said she would have dismissed this 20 years ago but would now go where she was needed.

Jolie, who is a special envoy to the UN Refugee Agency, was the guest editor of the Today programme on Friday.

She is an active campaigner on a range of issues, including refugees, sexual violence and conservation.

In a wide-ranging interview with presenter Justin Webb, she discussed US politics, social media, sexual violence and the global refugee crisis.

When asked whether she would consider getting involved in politics, she said: “If you asked me 20 years ago, I would’ve laughed... I always say I’ll go where I’m needed, I don’t know if I’m fit for politics… but then I’ve also joked that I don’t know if I have a skeleton left in my closet”.

“I’m also able to work with governments and I’m also able to work with militaries, and so I sit in a very interesting place of being able to get a lot done.”

She added that “for now”, she would stay quiet.

When Webb suggested that meant she could be on the list of 30 to 40 Democrats running for the party’s presidential nomination, she did not say no, replying “thank you”.

Jolie is one of a range of guest editors, including David Dimbleby and Martha Lane Fox, who are taking charge of the programme between 22 December to 1 January.

She also discussed the difficulties of monitoring her children’s social media activities, highlighting that like “most parents”, she cannot control everything they are exposed to.

“There are certain realities to teenagers and also our generation doesn’t understand half of what they are doing with their tech so they can get around us pretty easy”, she said.

She added that none of her children have asked to join Facebook, and she herself is not a member.

“We’re the last family that hasn’t gone on Facebook!” she said.

Jolie is also working with the BBC on a new weekly children’s news programme, Our World, which will be piloted in the new year.

She will serve as executive producer on the show, aimed at seven to 12-year-olds, which hopes to engage children with international news, focusing on subjects like tech, the environment and social media.

“As a mother, I’m so happy I will be able to sit and watch with my children and know they’re getting a real international sense of the world,” she said.

Source: BBC 
-Agencies