About a week and a half ago, I woke up to Fashionista’s latest article “Susie Bubble and Bryanboy respond to Vogue.com criticism on fashion bloggers”, I was feeling a bunch of different emotions while reading it. Since I was a child, I’ve looked up to Vogue magazine, enjoying the editors’ fashion critiques of collections and runway shows. However, I never thought that one day they would be criticizing something I’ve been working so hard for and a career many young women strive for; blogging. It’s 2016 and let’s just say that social media has become the new digital magazine. Brands would rather spend millions of dollars to have a blogger take a street style photo of their product on Instagram, rather than spend that money on advertisements. And guess what? IT WORKS. But apparently Vogue editors had other thoughts in mind.
“It’s not just sad for the women who preen for the cameras in borrowed clothes, it’s distressing, as well, to watch so many brands participate.” – Nicole Phelps
Sally Singer, Vogue Creative director: “It’s a schizophrenic moment, and that just can’t be good. (Note to bloggers who change head-to-toe, paid-to-wear outfits every hour: please stop. Find another business. You are heralding the death of style.)”
Sarah Mower, Vogue.com Chief Critic: “So yes, Sally, the professional blogger bit, with the added aggression of the street photographer swarm who attend them, is horrible, but most of all, pathetic for these girls, when you watch how many times the desperate troll up and down outside shows, in traffic, risking accidents even, in hopes of being snapped.”
Nicole Phelps, Director of Vogue Runway: “Which brings me back around to Sally and Sarah’s points about the street style mess. It’s not just sad for the women who preen for the cameras in borrowed clothes, it’s distressing, as well, to watch so many brands participate.”
“Looking for style among a bought-and-paid-for (‘Blogged Out?’) front row is like going to a strip club looking for romance.” Alessandra Codinha
Alessandra Codinha, Vogue.com Fashion News Editor: “Am I allowed to admit that I did a little fist pump when sally broached the blogger paradox? There’s not much I can add here beyond how funny it is that we even still call them ‘bloggers’, as so few of them even do that anymore. Rather than celebrating of any actual style, it seems to be all about turning up, looking ridiciulous, posing, twitching in your seat as you check your social media feeds, fleeing, changing, repeating… It’s all pretty embarrassing- even more so when you consider what else is going on in the world. Loving fashion is tremendous, and enthusiasts of all stripes are important to the industry – after all, people buy clothing because of desire, not any real need – but I have to think that soon people will wise up to how particularly gross the whole practice of paid appearances and borrowed outfits looks. Looking for style among a bought-and-paid-for (‘Blogged Out?’) front row is like going to a strip club looking for romance. Sure, it’s all kind of in the same ballpark, but it’s not even close to the real thing.”
Honestly, what’s the difference between bloggers and editors? It’s the same exact thing, except bloggers are running their own business, rather than working for a reputable magazine.
This article was supposed to be a critique on Milan Fashion week collections, instead it turned into a hateful feud over bloggers. My jaws dropped from beginning to end. “Pathetic”, “heralding the death of style”, “front row is like going to a strip club”, “street style mess”. WHAT? I mean that doesn’t make any sense. Vogue pays many bloggers to be the face of some of their monthly covers. They commemorate street style and is the true essence of what many Vogue editors write about.
“It’s schoolyard bullying, plain and simple”, said bryanboy.
Honestly, what’s the difference between bloggers and editors? It’s the same exact thing, except bloggers are running their own business, rather than working for a reputable magazine. And, I’m pretty sure many editors are also placed as advertisers in certain shows. Bloggers don’t need to find another business, since it’s already a multimillion dollar business that includes collaborations, contributing to the industry, professional appearances or clothing lines.
Being a blogger doesn’t allow me to just sell a product, I get to inspire and relate to many women through my writing and social media.
The free products, the fashion shows and events are only a fraction of what the business is about. And, honestly they all come through hard work. Being a full time blogger and generating income from it is very challenging. Many people forget that many of us are actually entrepreneurs trying to build our own brand. I respect all of the Vogue editors and I understand where their criticism is coming from, but this is the future of fashion. Being a blogger doesn’t allow me to just sell a product, I get to inspire and relate to many women through my writing and social media. It’s a great feeling. Also by being a blogger, we always need to be aware of other political and social issues around us, quoting “Have you even registered to vote?”. Why wouldn’t we be? It’s our job to stay up to date on all the latest news.
Why should Vogue be the one to discourage anyone from creating their own career path? Are bloggers stealing the spotlight from many Vogue editors? Are they jealous? Let’s just say the fashion world isn’t just controlled by you anymore. It’s time to share it.
On a final note, bloggers aren’t just bloggers, we’re entrepreneurs, influencers and business people as well.
Here’s what some top bloggers thought of this:
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