The Power of Giving Back

Cynthia Littleton

Thirteen years ago, one of Variety’s most entrepreneurial minds had a characteristically sharp idea. Michelle Sobrino-stearns, who is now our group publisher and CEO, had been invited to a string of meetups for high-powered women in the industry to gather and talk about breaking the glass ceiling. But it seemed like talk was all that happened: Beyond some pleasant rhetoric, these gatherings weren’t moving the needle. “I was going to these events, and it was all the same,” Sobrino-stearns recalls. “I wanted to meet women who were using their power for the greater good.”

Thus Variety’s Power of Women was born. Our biannual magazine issue and the accompanying dinner isn’t just about celebrating women with extraordinary careers (although that’s part of its DNA). This one-ofa-kind franchise is designed to celebrate the power of giving back. This year, we honor two cover stars — Elizabeth Olsen and Malala Yousafzai — who shine a light on organizations that you should know about: Stuart House and the Pillars Artist Fellowship. And for the first time, we’re also honoring the power of partnership with duos on our cover. Oprah Winfrey and Ava Duvernay have used the OWN drama “Queen Sugar” to nurture and develop the careers of dozens of female directors. And Hillary and Chelsea Clinton’s

Ramin Setoodeh

decades in public service have epitomized the notion of using your platforms, including their new berth on Apple TV+, for the greater good.

Now that Power of Women is thankfully back in person, we look forward to bringing together these extraordinary women on Sept. 28 for a night of inspiration. We hope that those who attend our dinner will think about new ways to use their own voices. And we always look forward to chance collisions of A-listers at our events, like at last year’s dinner when Lorde and Katy Perry became fast friends and Angelina Jolie spoke glowingly about the poet Amanda Gorman.

In this week’s magazine, we celebrate women who have changed Hollywood and the world beyond. And in this space, we’d like to applaud Michelle for something even bigger than creating Power of Women. On Sept. 8, 1997, Michelle began her career at Variety. Earlier this week, Variety and our parent company, PMC, celebrated her 25th year at the brand, toasting her impressive rise from junior sales rep to a CEO respected throughout the industry as a leader of great integrity. Michelle’s vision and competitiveness have made Variety into one of the strongest newsrooms in America. We’d like to dedicate this issue to her, and we vow to keep paying it forward.