Ashley Judd fires back at media over "puffy face" speculation

(CBS News) Ashley Judd is firing back at the media in a new op-ed piece, addressing recent comments made about her appearance.

It all stems back to March when the actress was photographed with what some media outlets called a "puffy face," prompting blogs and news organizations to question whether Judd had gotten work done. At the time, a publicist said Judd bad been taking a host of medications to battle a sinus infection.

Although her rep explained the reason behind the star's look, Judd still felt compelled to address the larger issue surrounding the media frenzy. In The Daily Beast op-ed article, Judd explained that she chose "to address it because the conversation was pointedly nasty, gendered, and misogynistic and embodies what all girls and women in our culture, to a greater or lesser degree, endure every day, in ways both outrageous and subtle."

Judd added, "The assault on our body image, the hypersexualization of girls and women and subsequent degradation of our sexuality as we walk through the decades, and the general incessant objectification is what this conversation allegedly about my face is really about."

The 43-year-old Judd then detailed five instances in which the media had questioned her appearance - from calling her a "cow" and a "pig," to saying Judd had "lost her familiar beauty."

Read the entire op-ed here.

Tell us: What do you think about Judd's stance?