Awkward Reporter Reminds Rashida Jones She's Tan

If you watched the red carpet coverage of Sunday night's Screen Actors Guild Awards, you likely watched it on E! because, well, why wouldn't you? E! is the standby for red carpet coverage even when Giuliana Rancic is replaced with an overheated Maria Menounos. Either way, if you chose E!, that's a good thing because apparently the coverage over at TNT was a little wonky. Case in point, a reporter reminded Rashida Jones that she was tan which, for the unaware, is due to the fact that she's biracial. Believe me, the video is just as cringe-y as that sounds.

In the clip, Jones walks up to reporter Danielle Demski, who, after a quick game of "who are you wearing," tells the actress, "You look like you've just come off, like, an island or something. You're very tan. Very tropical." To which mixed person Jones nicely responds, "I mean, ya know, I'm ethnic." To which co-host and white person JD Heyman responds, "Me too" while Demski laughs really hard. It is too awkwardly wonderful for my, also mixed person, heart to handle. Jones then finishes the interview with a look in her eye that seems to say, "What the hell was that? I can't wait to tell people about this."

I assume that the TNT hosts simply did not know that Jones was biracial (or did, and didn't realize how awkward it would be) and made the mistake earnestly — these two strike me as nothing if not earnest. But still, ya know, maybe don't just assume that every actress is a white lady who just got her private island tan on.

More than any feeling though, this interview brought back a memory for me; one from an episode of The Office in which Rashida Jones' character, Karen, meets Michael Scott for the first time. For those of you who haven't seen the show, Michael introduces himself to Karen and says, "Wow. You are very exotic looking. Was your dad a G.I.?" It's one of his many yikes moments.

So, note to reporters everywhere: try not to remind people of Michael Scott. It's not a good look.

Image: Giphy