Yahoo Lifestyle Bethenny Frankel Criticizes Celebrity Silence in Balenciaga Controversy
'Fashion means front row, fashions means currency, fashion has power.'
Bethenny Frankel has been using her social media influence to critique brands and the products they push for some time. Most recently, she used it to slam fellow celebrities for not speaking out against the Balenciaga ad controversy quickly enough.
In a Nov. 27 social media post, the former Real Housewives of New York star shamed the celebrities and public figures working with the brand for their silence regarding Balenciaga's latest ad campaign.
So far, Kim Kardashian is the only star aligned with the brand that has made a public statement condemning the campaign, but it wasn't until after Frankel scorned Hollywood A-listers associated with the fashion legacy– like Kardashian, Bella Hadid, and Nicole Kidman–for their silence on what she referred to as a "massive scandal."
"People kept messaging me and asking why no one is speaking up, and honestly I can’t answer that question," Frankel explained in the caption.
Frankel continued: "Celebrities are very enmeshed with and aligned with fashion because it provides for them additional value beyond their primary careers. I can’t imagine what transpired for something so egregious, outrageous and symbolically damaging, like this, to happen: it feels like a sign of the times and the media, social and otherwise, overall."
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"From a business standpoint, I assume it's because they either are paid by this brand [and] legally they're not allowed to speak negatively about the brand if they want to get paid. Or they have to associate with these brands because they like being on the cover of magazines and going to the Met Gala," Frankel stated in the video.
"Fashion means front row, fashions means currency, fashion has power," Frankel suggested, adding, "it seems these days. People like [Vogue editor-in-chief] Anna Wintour have more power than people in the entertainment industry."
Balenciaga's Spring 2023 campaign ran briefly before being pulled ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday. The now-removed ads for the controversial campaign featured children posing with inappropriate accessories–like bondage gear and glasses of wine–which some have likened to "child porn."
The company has since shared a public apology, deleted all of its social media posts, and is reportedly launching an investigation into the campaign and those that worked on it.
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