How the Death of Magazine “It-Girls” Gave Rise to Influencer Culture
The chic female journalists of 90s and 00s rom-coms were once the ultimate career role models. So how did the magazine "it-girl" disappear, and why did influencers replace her?
By Alexandra Hill
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here’s something in escaping to a bygone age of low-rise capris, fuchsia lip-lacquer, and glossy front covers as you rewatch your favourite 90s and 00s rom-com for the umpteenth time. There really is something in escaping to a time that felt much simpler, when your dream career felt attainable, and when you could look so good doing it.
It’s no surprise that a career in journalism has stolen the hearts of so many young girls throughout the last few decades. We were raised on a generation of glittery rom-coms that set out a how a woman should look, dress, fall in love, and, not-so subtly, what she should aspire to be. And somewhere down the line, a decision was made that these chic and sexy rom-com heroines would be a journalist.
This is not to say the magazine “it-girl” sprung out of nowhere. She has often been traced back to Howard Hawks’ 1940 screwball comedy His Girl Friday, later finding her footing with a little help from Nora Ephron and Meg Ryan: When Harry Met Sally (1989) came first, but Ryan’s authentic and relaxed role as reporter Annie in Sleepless in Seattle (1993) is a personal favourite. And not to forget Drew Barrymore who featured in not one but three female journo rom-coms: Never Been Kissed (1999), He’s Just Not That Into You (2009), and Going the Distance (2010).
But the pop-culture pinnacle of this phenomenon came to be no less than Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker) in Sex and the City, whose enormous success after it first aired in 1998 popularised female independence and sex positivity, giving rise to a new wave of female journos in the 00s romcom.
Take Andie Anderson (Kate Hudson) in How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days (2003), whose style and quick wit as the “How-To” columnist at Composure magazine made her a model of success, even if her desire to bring peace to Tajikistan (where else?!) was a little idealistic. Or take Jenna (Jennifer Garner) from 13 Going on 30 (2004), who made the fairy tale of drafting fashion copy from a luxury Manhattan pad feel like it could really come alive, while a realistic journo’s salary would probably score her no more than a NYC shoebox.
It wasn’t all about glamour, however. Across the pond, Bridget Jones’s Diary (2001) gave the media career dream a taste of relatability through Renée Zellweger’s down-to-earth performance as the titular woman herself, who started as a publishing assistant before later becoming a TV producer. Bridget’s popularity was likely responsible for passing the “single in your 30s and in love with your boss” baton onto columnist Iris (Kate Winslet) in the 2006 Christmas classic The Holiday.
But while these women writers found their Darcy in the end, let’s not forget that 00s magazine culture had its dark side. Thin was in (but realistically, when is it not?). Scathing headlines commenting on waists one inch too wide engendered a toxic beauty culture whose legacy continues to shape girls’ relationship to self-appearance and, concerningly, food. Runway editorial assistant Emily (Emily Blunt) in The Devil Wears Prada (2006) famously ate a cube of cheese to avoid passing out from starvation, while decreeing that Andy’s (Anne Hathaway) carb-eating habits strips her right to high-fashion outfits. Yikes!
But as media contended with a weakening economy, many journalists were soon stripped of their right to write. Mass layoffs paired with the digital boom meant the magazine “it-girl” lost her lead role, with the rom-com watered down by decades of industry budget cuts.
Anyone but You (2023), The Idea of You (2024), and Materialists (2025) have become—for better or for worse—some of the most talked-about rom-coms of the 2020s, but their easily digestible narratives and humdrum characterisations have meant modern rom-coms pale in comparison. And while the female journo trope has waned, where are our sexy and chic women in STEM?!
Besides, in the digital age of dating apps, the charming mishaps of love interests tripping over themselves for love just no longer cut it. Flipping through the pages of a glossy mag has been replaced by the infinite scroll, with girls now idealising the influencer “it-girl”, her flawless “clean” aesthetic, and her endless products promising overnight perfection.
In a tight job market, it’s hardly surprising to see a new generation of girls dream of going viral. Last year, around 3,000 journalism roles were cut in the UK and US alone due to media consolidation, which was brilliantly critiqued this year by The Devil Wears Prada 2 (2026). Let’s hope our future leading ladies will find a career worth falling in love with.
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