The fashion industry hegemony: The new wave of New Fashion Criticism

There has always been people, who wants to disrupt the hegemony in the fashion industry, and it continues to this day. Original blogs were very critical in the beginning, but magazines and publisher make it more difficult today. We see a rising wave of critical voices online which decentralized fashion discourses. The so-called New fashion Criticism, which I will look further into now. 

 

In order to understand the importance of Fashion Criticism as a rising phenomenon in the fashion industry, we need to understand the historical context. Why? What has happened? Until 2006, The Pulitzer award did not have an award-category for critical writers, unlike film-criticism. Depside this recognition fashion and Fashion Criticism is still to this day an undergoing process of legitimisation.[1] According to multiple scholars, the reason behind this missing legitimation in the fashion industry is the tight relationship between the fashion industry and press. In addition to this, another hindrance of this is the industry’s lack of tolerance for negative criticism at fashion shows, where critical fashion journalist is often banned from shows to avoid negative press[2].

 

Here a conflict occurs. From a theoretical point of view, fashion is a way of examining culture, but according to Angela Mc Robbie, critical fashion journalism, the industry does not possess critical knowledge and is not able to study other cultures[3] Why is this important to know? This is important to illuminate in order to understand the importance of New Fashion Criticism and the way it changes the narrative. According to George Serventi, a fashion journalist, New Fashion Criticism is important today because of its decentralized fashion discourses [4] Critical journalism online allows more inclusion of people. Countless individuals, fanatics and fashion professionals can share their opinions online, change the discourse, make noise – a space for people to see less defying fashion industry titans. Accounts like Diet Prada and Fatannawintour on Instagram gives readers and consumers a critical glimpse of the industry and even grow an audience of it. But why is that? We seem to like the absence of the titans and is instead seeking towards more authentic critical writers. Hereby, New Fashion Criticism is becoming the mediators between consumers and this complex industry, which has gained ground as subjects of critical analysis.

 

In an effort to illuminate the importance of New Fashion Criticism, and how powerful the critical journalism is today, I will prepare a short analysis of the phenomenon Cancel Culture. What is Cancel Culture? Cancel Culture is a new way to demonstrate the development of power in the industry, which is brought by social media - it arises when a person or a brand says something says something, which a group of people found very offensive and calls out the offender.[5] Cancel Culture gives consumers a glimpse on how New Fashion Criticism on social media works and how their power is distributed – more individuals voices become louder, a space where people can speak up and to hold titans like Vogue or brands accountable. 

 

This is challenging the dominates narratives in the fashion industry, and phenomenon like Cancel Culture and Instagram accounts like Diet Prada and Fatannawintour shows a variety of ways how New Fashion Criticism is challenging how fans of the industry until now have become disillusioned by the inability of critical journalistic rather than cheer and market it. 

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Cited work

Best, K. N. (2020). Berg Encyclopedia of World Dress and Fashion: West Europe. I Fashion Journalism (s. 143-151).

Bromwich, J. E. (October. 27 2020). The New York Times. Hentet fra Why ‘Cancel Culture’ Is a Distraction: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/14/podcasts/daily-newsletter-cancel-culture-beirut-protest.html

Fashioning Cultural Criticism: An Inquiry into Fashion Criticism and its Delay in Legitimization. (2019). I F. Granata, Fashion Theory.

Vartanian, A. (28. September 2020). techstyler.fashion. Hentet fra NEXT GEN FASHION JOURNALISTS REJECT MAINSTREAM PUBLICATIONS IN FAVOUR OF SOCIAL MEDIA – HERE’S WHY: https://techstyler.fashion/2020/09/next-gen-fashion-journalists-reject-mainstream-publications-in-favour-of-social-media-heres-why/

  

 

 

[1] Fashioning Cultural Criticism: An Inquiry into Fashion Criticism and its Delay in Legitimization. (2019). I F. Granata, Fashion Theory.

[2] Ibid.

[3] Best, K. N. (2020). Berg Encyclopedia of World Dress and Fashion: West Europe. I Fashion Journalism (s. 143-151).

[4] Vartanian, A. (28. September 2020). techstyler.fashion. Hentet fra NEXT GEN FASHION JOURNALISTS REJECT MAINSTREAM PUBLICATIONS IN FAVOUR OF SOCIAL MEDIA – HERE’S WHY: https://techstyler.fashion/2020/09/next-gen-fashion-journalists-reject-mainstream-publications-in-favour-of-social-media-heres-why/

[5] Bromwich, J. E. (October. 27 2020). The New York Times. Hentet fra Why ‘Cancel Culture’ Is a Distraction: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/14/podcasts/daily-newsletter-cancel-culture-beirut-protest.html