Staff members at Teen Vogue are calling out their newly appointed editor-in-chief.
What We Know:
- Former political reporter at Axios, Alexi McCammond, was hired as Teen Vogue’s top editor on Friday. Since then, mass media company Condé Nast, owner of Teen Vogue, has received over 20 reports from publication staff members concerned about their editor and chief’s resurfaced tweets. The tweets made by McCammond in 2011 include a number of anti-Asian statements alongside other racist and homophobic remarks.
- After the tweets came to light, the Teen Vogue staff has released a viral statement on Twitter publicly denouncing McCammond’s views. “We’ve built our outlet’s reputation as a voice for justice and change — we take immense pride in our work and in creating an inclusive environment. In a moment of historically high anti-Asian violence and amid the on-going struggles of the LGBTQ community, we as the staff of Teen Vogue fully reject those sentiments,” they wrote.
https://twitter.com/allegrakirkland/status/1369071340544753665
- The Daily Mail reported on McCammond’s tweets where she wrote, “googling how to not wake up with swollen, Asian eyes” and another now-deleted tweet calling a college teaching assistant as a “stupid Asian.” Screenshots from Twitter also show McCammond used ‘gay’ and ‘homo’ as insults online and questioned why an article about baseball umpire Dale Scott coming out as gay was ‘newsworthy.’
- This is the second time McCammond’s old tweets have resurfaced, the first being back in 2019. Despite her previous apology, McCammond emailed Teen Vogue staff to address their concerns. “You’ve seen some offensive, idiotic tweets from when I was a teenager that perpetuated harmful and racist stereotypes about Asian Americans,” she wrote. “Those tweets aren’t who I am, but I understand that I have lost some of your trust and will work doubly hard to earn it back. I want you to know I am committed to amplifying [Asian American and Pacific Islander] voices across our platforms and building upon the groundbreaking, inclusive work this title is known for the world over.”
McCammond is still expected to step into her new role on Wednesday, March 24th, 2021.
