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It’s been awhile since we’ve had a good influencer beef, but not to worry, New York Times food columnist Alison Roman and celebrity personality Chrissy Teigen have exchanged some words that are driving a lot of conversation on the internet.
On Friday night, Teigen went on Twitter to respond to some pretty thoughtless comments that columnist Roman made in an interview with New Consumer magazine. And because this is the internet, people are of course taking sides.
If you’re confused about what’s going on, For The Win is here to fill you in.
First of all who is Alison Roman?
If you’re not a regular reader of the New York Times food section, you might not know the name, but Alison Roman is a well-known columnist who frequently writes recipes for the site. She also has a best selling cookbook and a big Instagram following. She is a popular food personality that has a strong and devoted following.
You already know who Chrissy Teigen is, but if you aren’t aware, she also has a hugely popular cookbook and a line of cookware at Target, plus a very active YouTube channel where she posts recipes and such.
So, what did Roman actually say?
Early Friday, Roman gave a, shall we say, freewheeling interview to New Consumer magazine where she took unfortunate shots Japanese lifestyle guru Marie Kondo and Teigen.
She first slammed Kondo for having her own product line.
Like the idea that when Marie Kondo decided to capitalize on her fame and make stuff that you can buy, that is completely antithetical to everything she’s ever taught you… I’m like, damn, bitch, you fucking just sold out immediately! Someone’s like “you should make stuff,” and she’s like, “okay, slap my name on it, I don’t give a [expletive]!”
Roman then went after Teigen.
Like, what Chrissy Teigen has done is so crazy to me. She had a successful cookbook. And then it was like: Boom, line at Target. Boom, now she has an Instagram page that has over a million followers where it’s just, like, people running a content farm for her. That horrifies me and it’s not something that I ever want to do. I don’t aspire to that.
Yikes, that sounds pretty harsh.
Yeah, that’s really not cool, considering that Kondo and Teigen are both Asian women who are succeeding in spaces that have long been dominated by white women. One of the reasons Roman’s comments are causing so much outrage is because Roman herself seems to be tone deaf to her own privilege.
Plus, Roman also has a line of cookware coming out with the startup Material, and has done partnerships with J.Crew and Madewell. In the interview, she alludes to also having a team help her with her brand. These are all things she’s criticizing Teigen and Kondo for, which feels pretty hypocritical.
Has Teigen responded?
She has. Late Friday night, Teigen posted a lengthy a Twitter thread saying she was hurt by Roman’s comments, and that not only has she been a fan of Roman’s for a long time, but that she was actually attached to executive produce a TV show starring Roman.
Mostly, Teigen defended the work she put into her Cravings line, calling it a labor of love.
Has Roman apologized yet?
Kind of. The interview has been circulating all day, but at first Roman tried to play victim card.
Later, after Teigen basically put her on blast, she posted a more formal apology but doesn’t really seem to understand why what she said was wrong.
There seems to be something deeper simmering here
There is. It’s not clear why Roman went after two prominent Asian personalities, while leaving Goop and the likes of Martha Stewart alone. This dust up between the two has stared a conversation about who gets to make money off of their food.
Roman is a very popular columnist, but she’s also been criticized for appropriating food she has no claim too.
So who’s winning the beef?
Right now, it’s Teigen. She’s the much bigger name and it’s clear that Roman took shots she really didn’t need to be taking.
