Mia Freedman
Encyclopedia
Mia Freedman is an journalist, columnist, author, blogger and media consultant.
and art gallery
owner, and Laurence Freedman, who worked in finance and currently heads The Freedman Foundation. Her father came to Australia to flee the apartheid regime in South Africa
. Freedman was raised Jewish. She grew up in Sydney
and attended the Ascham School
.
, doing work experience at the age of 19. Her first paid job in media was as Cleo's Beauty Editor and she stayed at Cleo for five years working her way up to the position of Features Editor. She left Cleo in 1995 and spent several months as a freelance features writer for magazines including Marie Claire
, New Weekly
and Who Weekly.
In 1996 she became Editor of Australian Cosmopolitan
magazine. At age 24, she was the youngest editor of Cosmopolitan's 58 international editions.
In 2001 she was named Editor Of The Year by her peers at the Magazine Publishers Association Awards and during the time she was editor, Cosmopolitan experienced a surge in circulation, readership and advertising revenue. She also launched new stand-alone titles Cosmopolitan Hair & Beauty, Cosmopolitan Pregnancy and Cosmopolitan Brides which are all published several times a year.
The career achievement she has said she was most proud of was instigating Cosmo's Body Love policy in 1997 where diets were banned and "real women" (aka non-models) sized 6-16 and of different skin colours were featured in every issue. Freedman has said diversity, empowerment and reality were her editorial mantras during her time as editor of Cosmo.
She appeared for several years each week on Today
, discussing news and lifestyle issues surrounding women, fashion and popular culture.
After seven years and 100 issues editing Cosmopolitan, Freedman became the Editor-In-Chief of Cosmopolitan
, Cleo
and Dolly in 2003.
In 2005, a book of Freedman's writing called "The New Black" was published by HarperCollins
.
After having her second child in 2005, Freedman briefly moved to the Nine Network
as Creative Director as part of the executive management team where she oversaw the launch of daytime female chatshow The Catch Up.
Freedman resigned from the Nine Network
after less than a year in TV and The Catch Up was cancelled immediately afterwards.
In 2007, Freedman launched her website/blog mamamia.com.au.
She has been writing a weekly column for Sunday Life magazine which appears in The Sun-Herald
and the Sunday Age. She has also written features for the Sydney Morning Herald, Good Weekend, Madison and other publications.
She takes on many public speaking engagements to discuss body image in the media, work/life balance and her life and career.
Freedman has stated that she is not the author of a book called "Boned" that was released on June 2, 2008. Freedman has said on her website after hearing speculation she was the anonymous author "Not me, I'm afraid. I put my name to everything I write."
Her second book is a memoir. Called Mamamia: A Memoir of Mistakes, Magazines & Motherhood, it will be released in September 2009 by Harper Collins.
She appears regularly as a commentator on Today
on the Nine Network
and in 2009 was appointed Chair of the Federal Government's National Body Image Advisory Group by Minister for Sport and Youth, Kate Ellis.
Early life
Freedman was born to Kathy, a psychologistPsychologist
Psychologist is a professional or academic title used by individuals who are either:* Clinical professionals who work with patients in a variety of therapeutic contexts .* Scientists conducting psychological research or teaching psychology in a college...
and art gallery
Art gallery
An art gallery or art museum is a building or space for the exhibition of art, usually visual art.Museums can be public or private, but what distinguishes a museum is the ownership of a collection...
owner, and Laurence Freedman, who worked in finance and currently heads The Freedman Foundation. Her father came to Australia to flee the apartheid regime in South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
. Freedman was raised Jewish. She grew up in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
and attended the Ascham School
Ascham School
Ascham School is an independent, non-denominational, day and boarding school for girls', located in Edgecliff, an Eastern Suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia....
.
Career
She began her career at CleoCleo (magazine)
CLEO is an Australian, New Zealand, South African, Malaysian, Singaporean, Thailand and Indonesian women's magazine.Aimed at an older audience than the teenage-focused Dolly, the magazine is known for its CLEO Bachelor of the Year award....
, doing work experience at the age of 19. Her first paid job in media was as Cleo's Beauty Editor and she stayed at Cleo for five years working her way up to the position of Features Editor. She left Cleo in 1995 and spent several months as a freelance features writer for magazines including Marie Claire
Marie Claire
Marie Claire is a monthly women's magazine first published in France but also distributed in other countries with editions specific to them and in their languages. While each country shares its own special voice with its audience, the United States edition focuses on women around the world and...
, New Weekly
New Weekly
NW magazine is a weekly magazine published in Australia. It offers articles about media celebrities, Hollywood gossip, clothing, makeup, dieting, and entertainment. New Weekly was started by 1993 by then Australian Consolidated Press executive Richard Walsh, with a renaming to NW in 1998. ...
and Who Weekly.
In 1996 she became Editor of Australian Cosmopolitan
Cosmopolitan (magazine)
Cosmopolitan is an international magazine for women. It was first published in 1886 in the United States as a family magazine, was later transformed into a literary magazine and eventually became a women's magazine in the late 1960s...
magazine. At age 24, she was the youngest editor of Cosmopolitan's 58 international editions.
In 2001 she was named Editor Of The Year by her peers at the Magazine Publishers Association Awards and during the time she was editor, Cosmopolitan experienced a surge in circulation, readership and advertising revenue. She also launched new stand-alone titles Cosmopolitan Hair & Beauty, Cosmopolitan Pregnancy and Cosmopolitan Brides which are all published several times a year.
The career achievement she has said she was most proud of was instigating Cosmo's Body Love policy in 1997 where diets were banned and "real women" (aka non-models) sized 6-16 and of different skin colours were featured in every issue. Freedman has said diversity, empowerment and reality were her editorial mantras during her time as editor of Cosmo.
She appeared for several years each week on Today
Today (Australian TV program)
Today and Weekend Today are Australian breakfast television programmes, the show is often referred to as The Today Show. The show has been broadcast live by the Nine Network each morning since 1982...
, discussing news and lifestyle issues surrounding women, fashion and popular culture.
After seven years and 100 issues editing Cosmopolitan, Freedman became the Editor-In-Chief of Cosmopolitan
Cosmopolitan (magazine)
Cosmopolitan is an international magazine for women. It was first published in 1886 in the United States as a family magazine, was later transformed into a literary magazine and eventually became a women's magazine in the late 1960s...
, Cleo
Cleo (magazine)
CLEO is an Australian, New Zealand, South African, Malaysian, Singaporean, Thailand and Indonesian women's magazine.Aimed at an older audience than the teenage-focused Dolly, the magazine is known for its CLEO Bachelor of the Year award....
and Dolly in 2003.
In 2005, a book of Freedman's writing called "The New Black" was published by HarperCollins
HarperCollins
HarperCollins is a publishing company owned by News Corporation. It is the combination of the publishers William Collins, Sons and Co Ltd, a British company, and Harper & Row, an American company, itself the result of an earlier merger of Harper & Brothers and Row, Peterson & Company. The worldwide...
.
After having her second child in 2005, Freedman briefly moved to the Nine Network
Nine Network
The Nine Network , is an Australian television network with headquarters based in Willoughby, a suburb located on the North Shore of Sydney. For 50 years since television's inception in Australia, between 1956 and 2006, it was the most watched television network in Australia...
as Creative Director as part of the executive management team where she oversaw the launch of daytime female chatshow The Catch Up.
Freedman resigned from the Nine Network
Nine Network
The Nine Network , is an Australian television network with headquarters based in Willoughby, a suburb located on the North Shore of Sydney. For 50 years since television's inception in Australia, between 1956 and 2006, it was the most watched television network in Australia...
after less than a year in TV and The Catch Up was cancelled immediately afterwards.
In 2007, Freedman launched her website/blog mamamia.com.au.
She has been writing a weekly column for Sunday Life magazine which appears in The Sun-Herald
The Sun-Herald
The Sun-Herald is an Australian tabloid newspaper published on Sundays in Sydney by Fairfax Media. It is the Sunday counterpart of The Sydney Morning Herald. In the 6 months to September 2005, The Sun-Herald had a circulation of 515,000...
and the Sunday Age. She has also written features for the Sydney Morning Herald, Good Weekend, Madison and other publications.
She takes on many public speaking engagements to discuss body image in the media, work/life balance and her life and career.
Freedman has stated that she is not the author of a book called "Boned" that was released on June 2, 2008. Freedman has said on her website after hearing speculation she was the anonymous author "Not me, I'm afraid. I put my name to everything I write."
Her second book is a memoir. Called Mamamia: A Memoir of Mistakes, Magazines & Motherhood, it will be released in September 2009 by Harper Collins.
She appears regularly as a commentator on Today
Today (Australian TV program)
Today and Weekend Today are Australian breakfast television programmes, the show is often referred to as The Today Show. The show has been broadcast live by the Nine Network each morning since 1982...
on the Nine Network
Nine Network
The Nine Network , is an Australian television network with headquarters based in Willoughby, a suburb located on the North Shore of Sydney. For 50 years since television's inception in Australia, between 1956 and 2006, it was the most watched television network in Australia...
and in 2009 was appointed Chair of the Federal Government's National Body Image Advisory Group by Minister for Sport and Youth, Kate Ellis.