General Counsel & Chief Wind-Down Officer, Bowflex
Search every verified Robert Hoge interview, podcast appearance, and on-the-record quote — each transcript cross-checked by AI and human review to confirm speaker identity. Robert Hoge, author of the memoir "Ugly" and a former political advisor, has spoken publicly about his experiences with facial deformities and the concept of "owning" one's face. In a 2015 TEDx talk, Hoge described being born with a massive tumor on his face that pushed his eyes to the sides of his head, and having a nose reconstructed from one of his deformed toes during childhood. He stated that the biggest obstacle to people owning their faces is "us disowning them when we ogle a photoshopped magazine cover" or "click on the link promising celebrity photos without makeup." Hoge argued that "owning is choosing" and encouraged people to "choose to accept your face, choose to appreciate your face." In a 2014 interview, Hoge discussed his relationship with beauty, saying he believes there is an aesthetic standard by which people can be classified as ugly, but that "there's nothing wrong with beauty." He noted that his mother initially rejected him after his birth, but that his siblings voted to bring him home. Hoge recounted that at age 14, his parents gave him the choice of whether to undergo further surgery, and he decided against it. He said he still finds it difficult when his wife tells him she thinks he is beautiful, but understands "that it's real for her and that's the important thing."
“The biggest obstacle to us owning our faces is us disowning them when we ogle a photoshopped magazine cover, when we click on the link promising celebrity photos without makeup.”
“When I was developing in my mother's womb, I had a massive tumor at the front of my face. It was about the size of my newborn baby's fist and pushed my eyes to the side of my head, like a fish.”
“My mother rejected me; she decided then and there that she couldn't connect with this face. She didn't want to own it, she didn't want to own me.”
“The doctors told my parents they were going to do about 40 different surgical procedures, including slicing open my face, cutting a V-shaped chunk out of my skull, pushing my eyes back to the front, and using one of my deformed toes to build a new nose.”
Father, author of the book 'Ugly' and political advisor Robert Hoge explores why we all need to own our own faces. Sharing his ...
Robert Hoge, journalist, former speechwriter and political advisor and author of Ugly: My Memoir Moderator: Natasha Mitchell, ...
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