Thanks [MENTION=36315]aurora[/MENTION] for being our media source once again! Even though we had the scoop here first!
I am intrigued by the framing of the article, with its picture of Dan, the misspelling of Ed's name, and Jade being described as being "in tow". Jade has more followers on twitter and instagram than Dan, yet Dan is the one who is the focus of the gossipy article, indicating that at least THIS media scribe thinks he's the bigger deal. He seems to have done a good job of parlaying his 7th place finish in what I understand to be a low rated year of MasterChef into viability as a media figure. It's for this reason that I'm hoping Jade is spending time with him, because he clearly is able to work the media system to his advantage, something I want for Jade as well. I think it works as a good symbiotic friendship, if nothing else. Chef Hottie gets to broaden his fan base some more and Jade gets the opportunity to see up close the hard work and networking that go into building a career in media, even if I don't think she'll ever be doing this type of media work.
I think I've said before that Jade is not a "performer". (If I haven't actually said it on this forum, it's because I wrote it in some long analysis of her that I ended up deleting before posting, so I apologize...I at least MEANT to say it!) That's not a slight of Jade at all. There are people out there who love to be the center of attention, who think their thoughts and opinions MUST be heard, and who live to entertain others. There are varying degrees of "performers" even amongst people who are in show business. In this day and age, we often value "performance" over actual talent and the media seems to go crazy over people who are willing to just lay everything out for the public to see (or who appear to do so, depending on the calculation of the individual involved.) Being a performer is necessary for those who want to do presenting, who want to host talk shows, who want to be a TV Chef, who want to have a reality show based on their life (or who at least want it to be a popular show!), and, sadly these days, who want to be in the music business. But while I'm sure it can help to get you noticed, being an individual personality is not a necessary feature of the acting profession, oddly enough. In fact, it can sometimes work against you, if people can't see beyond YOU to the character you are trying to portray. Jade may not be a show pony, but I think it's possible that with some more training and experience, she could become quite a good actress. She already does an excellent job of conveying mood, tone, and emotion in some of her more professional photo shoots. I do wish that we would have seen that "commercial" for her ice cream "product", during that last week in the house, because I actually thought she was one of the better, more natural performers from what we saw in the clips. Jade is not a spontaneously entertaining personality who is in your face screaming, "look at me", and she lacks the confidence to just say whatever she's thinking of feeling, but I think when she is rehearsed and knows her subject, she does quite well. I hope hanging around Dan gives her the opportunity to practice these skills and become more comfortable in all media situations.