Alfre Woodard talks playing a female president

She plays a fictional commander in chief on TV, but Alfre Woodard says her role could affect how people view real-life politicians.

Playing President Constance Payton on NBC’s “State of Affairs,” Woodard says, is important to “get people accustomed to saying ‘Madame President,’ ” while showing “that the sun will still come up in the morning.”

The Oscar-nominated actress, who is 62, spoke Thursday at an event on global journalism hosted by Foreign Affairs magazine, the United Nations Foundation and Devex, a global development social media platform. The gathering in Washington was tied to a weekend of festivities surrounding the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner.