Has A Lack Of Diversity Shackled The Growth Of British Vogue?
Introduction
The role of a fashion journalist is to report fashion news, document fashion and objectively critique fashion concepts, events and collections. It is the role of a fashion journalist to ensure that they communicate in a way that their target audience will understand and find engaging. Diversity is a term that creates racial tension the moment it is mentioned. The truth is, diversity can come in many different forms. There is diversity of thought whereby it is possible for individuals that share the same ethnic group to have completely opposing opinions. The reason why diversity is so closely linked with ethnicity is because there is a correlation that exists between opinion and ethnicity due to certain ethnic groups having very specific shared experiences such as racism regardless of their social class. The problem that British Vogue has had for numerous years is not only the fact that the prototypical woman that writes for vogue is white. It is also because that same woman is from a very specific background. Middle-upper-class. The product of this line-up leads to stale opinions from the viewpoint of a narrow spectrum trying to write what they think the everyday person can relate to. Before British Vogue tries to tackle the complex issue of ethnic diversity, the focus must first be on diversity of thought.
Fashion journalists must possess a high level of cultural literacy. The importance of this is highlighted by the diverse readership of British Vogue. Journalists must have the ability to be critical whilst avoiding cultural insensitivity, something British Vogue is infamous for.
Why is diversity important?
Diversity plays a huge role in the ability to be innovative and create engaging content for a diverse audience such as the readership of British Vogue. Using the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp as a case study, the benefits of diversity of thought are very evident. Originally, the institution was primarily focused on art courses. It was not until the 1960s that Mary Prijot who had a background in painting was tasked with inserting a fashion course into the curriculum of the institution. In the 1963 – 1964 academic season Mary Prijot managed to launch the first fashion course at the university. The difference between this fashion course and fashion courses at other institutions was that at the Royal Academy of Arts the fashion course was taught by artists. Their training and background led them to treat fashion more as an artistic form as opposed to the regimented and commercial guidance you were given in fashion schools in Paris and Milan. What was the outcome? Fashion students that designed like artists, which led to innovation in the fashion industry. It is no secret that some of the best designers in the world have some connection to the Belgian institution. The likes of Ann Demeulemeester, Dries Van Noten, Walter Van Beirendonck, Dirk Van Saene, Marina Yee, Martin Margiela, Dirk Bikkembergs, Haider Ackermann, Raf Simons, Kris Van Assche and Demna Gvasalia are all living testaments to the importance and benefit of diversity of expression and thought in fashion. It is therefore important that fashion journalists learn about other industries outside of fashion.
How can fashion journalists engage a diverse and exciting readership?
The case study presented in the previous section highlights the importance of a fashion journalist learning about different aspects of life outside of fashion. A fashion journalist must also mix and communicate with people of all ages, ethnicities and social classes. This creates a well-rounded journalist that has a better ability to understand a wider audience and subsequently write engaging content that can interest people that have not previously shown interest in British Vogue as well as relate to the current readership. Nike is a company that can be used to illustrate the importance of using listening and market research to continue to engage a wider audience of all age ranges. Nike is known for employing young teenagers as reporters for what is cool amongst the gen-z demographic as well as finding out what will keep them engaged. Fashion journalists need to possess the self-awareness to understand that they need to constantly consult directly with members of various demographics to find out where their interests lie. How can a 50-year-old journalist truly understand the mind of a 21-year-old otherwise? This information will leave the journalist better informed on how to keep the readership engaged. Will we see more well-rounded fashion journalists writing engaging content for British Vogue in 2020? With the recent appointment of Edward Enninful as the editor in chief of British Vogue, there has been a focus on the diversity of the staff within the publication which will inevitably lead to more diversity of thought. For now, we can say the publication is on the right track.
References
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