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Exclusive: Marie Claire EIC Joanna Coles Responds to Controversial Fatist Blog Post
By Leah Chernikoff
Marie Claire sex and relationship blogger Maura Kelly drew the ire of the internet yesterday with her post about CBS sitcom Mike & Molly titled “Should ‘Fatties’ Get a Room? (Even on TV?),” in which she concluded, yes, “fatties” should get a room because overweight people “gross” her out. Kelly’s post has since received nearly 1,000 comments, and unsurprisingly, the vast majority of them pillory her.
Some commenters are so upset with the mag for publishing the post that they claim they are canceling their subscriptions. One even called for a boycott of Marie Claire until Kelly was fired.
So what does Marie Claire EIC Joanna Coles think of the piece? We asked her yesterday at Banana Republic’s spring show.
“Maura Kelly is a very provocative blogger,” Coles told us. “She was an anorexic herself and this is a subject she feels very strongly about.”
Coles said the mag has received over 28,000 email responses to the piece, and that Kelly was “excited and moved by their responses.”
While Coles made clear that she hasn’t actually seen Mike & Molly, she added “I’m concerned about a show that makes fun of large people.”
I haven’t seen the sitcom in question either, and yes, the show has its naysayers, but the critical response has been positive in regards to the way it addresses issues around weight. “Mike & Molly is significant as the second fictional series in recent months to take weight not as a sideshow but rather as a central, animating subject, surpassing even the efforts made by Roseanne in the 1980s and ’90s,” Ginia Bellafante wrote in her review of the sitcom for the New York Times. “Huge, a drama about teenagers at a fat camp, which appeared this summer on ABC Family, displayed a similar sensitivity, a tone aimed at correcting for the reflexive cultural judgments levied against the overweight at a time when obesity has been cast as one of the greatest blights of our age.” “I didn’t take it as making fun at all, and I think I’m really sensitive to that stuff,” actress Melissa McCarthy, who plays Molly, told the Chicago Tribune in August.
Coles went on to rightfully point out that Kelly has since updated her post, profusely apologizing for being “insensitive” and coming off as a “bully.” She also acknowledges that her struggle with anorexia may have had a part in what she calls her “extreme reaction” to the show.
Do you accept her apology? And has Coles done the right thing by standing by the post?
Tags: Joanna Coles, Marie Claire, Maura Kelly
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No…I have PCOS, which makes it hard for me to maintain my weight…I am not obese, but think that this nonsense that everyone has to look alike is horrible.
I don’t like to use bad language so I’ll say this as nicely as I can manage. Eff you Marie Claire, eff you, Joanna Coles, and especially eff you Maura Kelly. You hate fat people because you were anorexic? Bitch please. That should make you more sensitive to other people’s body issues, not less.
Wonder if I should cancel my subscription; and don’t put some FAT models on the cover to try and make up….LOL!!
Wonder if I should cancel my Subsciption; and, don’t try and but some FAT models on the cover to try and make up….LOL
Good on you! I don’t think everyone has to be model thin but I don’t think we need to glamorize obesity with a comedy TV show. Portraying obesity as an acceptable lifestyle is wrong. I don’t want to see obese people on television anymore than I want to see sitcom stars smoking on television. The majority of the American public are getting fatter and I think TV Executives are going after the fat demographics. -
Marie Claire isn’t exactly a smart, good quality publication so I’m not too surprised about Marla Kelly’s commentary, nor with the EIC’s ambivalent response. The best thing we can hope for is that readers will realize it’s trash and stop reading, and comments like these will no longer have a market.
In a shocking development, I am personally in the “morbidly obese” category, according to my BMI (43, for those keeping count); however, I have run 3 half marathons, have a BP of 117/78, and my cholesterol is a SHOCKING 165. Sadly, I must not be healthy because the trolls say so. Guess I’ll just go cry about it. The thing that really surprises me is that this writer is a recovering anorexic. She is someone that was so unbelievably concerned about people’s perception of her own weight, and yet now she feels compelled to ridicule those that have real weight problems? And yes, she does have a right to her opinion, and yes, she can publish it anywhere that will allow her. So, to those of you who think you know what morbidly obese actually means/looks like, or how it is medically impossible for a morbidly obese person to be healthy, go read a book that wasn’t published by Cosmo or Dr. Phil, and thank your lucky stars that you don’t struggle with weight problems.
It is really strange to see this thing turn into a debate about whether or not its OK or healthy to be fat. The real issue that this highlights (especially after reading the comments on this and other blogs on the topic) is that there is a large segment of the population that feels that it is OK to overtly put down and degrade obese people. Juan Williams, speaking on Fox’s ‘The O’Reilly Factor,’ stated people in Muslim garb on planes make him ‘worried’ and ‘nervous’ and he’s promptly fired. Ms. Kelly says fat people gross her out so badly that she can hardly stand to even look at them walk across a room, much less kiss and caress eachother’s fat rolls and people are carrying the banner of “free speech” and going on about the burden of fat people are to society. Her boss excuses her because she has “issues” relating to her battle with anorexia, but its somehow NOT ok to have issues about a certain “look” that is associated with a group of people who are terrorizing people worldwide? Was his not an honest opinion?
Now I know many people who support Ms. Kelly’s right to speak her mind also may not agree with Mr. William’s firing and others who would say there is no comparing the issues. The ultimate point is that one simply cannot judge by appearance alone. Muslim garb does not a terrorist make, nor does morbid obesity imply someone who is a lazy, gluttonous, parasite.
Perhaps Ms. Kelly was just trying to create some controvesy and generate traffic. But, I tend to believe she was being clueless, insensitive and taking a cheap shot at an easy target. Everyone can get around the idea that fat people are gross, right? Cause…ya know, they are…ewwww. Can a girl get an amen people? I think that’s what she expected to happen. Oh yea, I’m sure she probably thought she’d hurt a few plus sized feelings, but hey…they can always put down the cookies and they wouldn’t have to worry about it.
The creators of Mike and Molly also produce the highly popular Two and a Half Men, which stars an alcoholic sex addict who routinely pays for the services of prostitutes. In this week’s episode, the scoundrel’s brother was caught masturbating in front of his computer. Do I believe that this show makes prostitution, alcoholism, or internet pornography acceptable? No. Do I laugh my ass off at it? Sure. Quite frankly, I get a bit more grossed out when I see the nerdy parasitic brother cranking one off in front of his computer screen than seeing a couple of heavy people giving eachother a rather benign kiss. Does Ms. Kelly speak out against the degrading way the primary character sees women? I don’t know, but I’m betting not. After all….its not GROSS when two hot people are making out even if one of them is getting paid for it.
HAAAAAAA, Should Fat People Get A Room? I Won’t Lie It Can Kind Of Gross Me Out, Love Is Love.
StyleNonsense.blogspot.com
Maura’s very ugly. Did she think losing weight would make her pretty? it didn’t. Hopefully MC will spring for a plastic surgeon and get rid of her huge nose and fat face.
reading that article felt like a slap in my face. where on earth does the author get off grouping “fat people” with drunks and heroin addicts? and did you ever think that i find it GROSS to see a skinny chick walk across the room? with all her bones poking out and no curves, you look like a teenage boy and that’s not “aesthetically pleasing” to me either, but i don’t write about it and then have it published in a major magazine. so marie claire i have to ask you this…why on earth do you have an editor that would allow this kind of negative talk to be not only inspired, but condoned? i’ll give the author credit for at least attempting to make things right, but you’re living in a fantasy world if you think i believe it was sincere. i don’t think the lady should get fired, i mean you all approved the article to be published, right? this goes deeper than that. i currently subscribe to 6 fashion magazines, marie claire not being one of them, and if this nasty article is reflective of the views of marie claire then you can guarantee that my FAT wallet won’t be spending any money on it.
Aren’t people with eat disorders costing our insurance companies money? My Marie Claire sub is cancelled!
regarding the headline of this post… what’s a fatist? Someone who believes in fate?
The editor should be the one responsible for this, for allowing the article to get published.
If she was bashing gays she would have immediately been fired, but since she just picks on “fatties”, no one will do anything. It’s the last acceptable prejudice in this country.
The editor who asked her to post regarding this should be fired. It was their fault because they obviously knew how she would respond. Why else would she ask her to do it? To get hits and people talking that’s why. Did you do your job and get hits? Yes did you loose subscribers? Yes. Was it worth it?
No.
People were angry about how the blogger attacked fat people equating them to heroin addicts and how she hated seeing them walk across the room.
The magazine should have deleted the post as the author intended and assigned her psychiatric help.
What would the magazine have done if it were about Race? They would have fired her and taken out a full page ad in the NYTimes declaring that the blogger’s point of view did not reflect there’s. This is no different. Until such time as it is treated in the same way I will not be purchasing marie claire on the stands and will boycott any company who used the mag to sell their product.
The outrage is not about her not liking the show – its not a great show yet but shows potential. At times it’s downright bad in its writing.
The outrage is about how this blogger put down an entire group of people without apparent knowledge or caring what she did. We have enough of a hard time in life with societies horrid bigotry. Bigots do not need even further encouragement from a women’s magazine.
She apologized for posting and said she wished she could take it down. it should have been taken down but no – its milked for all its worth. She did not apologize for being a fat bigot.
ok there are spelling errors in my comment . sorry for that.
No one should have to justify their existence – and Marie Claire’s carefully screened “counterpoints” are doing just that – justifying why those Maura Kelly thinks are obese have the right to dignity. Well, guess what? It’s not up for discussion. It’s not something that we can take a vote on. It’s certainly not something that I’m going to make a “talking point”. It’s no one’s business why someone is the size/shape/whatever they are, but their own and their physician’s – and to say otherwise is to take away that person’s dignity.
If Juan Williams Can get fired for his comments. Then this woman shouldn’t be allowed near a computer ever again. Do the world a favor and remove her from your staff [Marie Claire].
Maura Kelly used to battle anorexia. Her post clearly shows her personal fear of becoming “fat”. I feel sorry for her because she still seems to be dealing with some psychological issues caused by her anorexia. People are always negative towards what they are afraid of or threatened by.
Also people ARE responsible for their own health. Smokers know smoking is bad for them however they continue to smoke. People who are considered to be obese know that they need to lose the weight, but they continue to eat unhealthy foods and they don’t exercise. People who are unhealthy can make lifestyle changes to become healther and it is THEIR choice whether or not they choose to. I don’t agree with judging them, and shaming them doesn’t make things any better or easier. I believe anyone who is negative towards others unnecessarily clearly has issues within themselves. Remember the quote “don’t judge a book by its cover.” It is hard to quit smoking and it is also hard to lose weight, especially if it’s in your genes. Some people who are thin also have a hard time gaining weight. Never assume things about other people. Let people live their own lives and focus on your own.
Uhm, where was this writer’s editor? Clearly the post was stupid and insensitive. Her follow up apology where she basically admits that “some of my best friends are plump” came across as what it was — an age old cover for people who hate other people for the way they look. (And she doesn’t say if she finds her plump (size 10?) friends disgusting. It still read as if she would prefer that all fat people die alone than have to put any aesthetically unpleasing images in her mind.) But I also grant that if she’s struggled with anorexia she is probably hell and gone from any rational ability to view the world and body image in any healthy way. So that still begs the question, where was her editor and why didn’t they reject the post?
Wow, I hope all you haters that drank your hater-ade this morning aren’t Christians. Seriously … thou shalt not jude people. Your comments and thoughts will come back as karma. God loves us all … it isn’t for you to say, judge or critique. I mean, say what you want … it will be your personal day come judgement day … just sayin … and oh … put some astoglide up your ass so you can maybe try not to be such a tight ass. Just a suggestion…. and yea, marie claire … I’ll never even look at a cover of your magazine again. How hateful. I guess you’re gonna have a bigotry of the month column coming soon — something I don’t need to see.
You fatties will say anything to justify your fat and avoid losing weight, won’t you? You should be thanking Ms. Kelly for the wake-up call to lose weight and get healthy.
Not all skinny people are anorexic or have an eating disorder. Many large people have eating disorders as well. There are many large people that diet and some large people have anorexia. To equate skinny with anorexia and bulimia is absolutely insane because anyone can get the disorder, not just skinny people. It’s stupid how some people bash skinny women, when the article is about Marie Claire. Bash Maura Kelly and the magazine, not skinny people.
Olsens was also in the november issue of Marie Claire Turkey , love them
http://aysegulsblog.blogspot.com/
http://aysegulsblog.blogspot.com/
I think this says more about media than anything else. All these writers and journalists haven’t even seen the show yet have commented on it. An Editor-In-Chief of a magazine has the gall to make a comment when she hasn’t seen the show. Go to journalism school! These people should be fired. What is wrong with this?! Even the writer of this blog hasn’t seen the show. As a person who HAS seen the show, I can say the show begins with the main characters meeting at an OA meeting, In each episodes it shows the main characters struggling with their addiction. Hello! That may be why this show is doing well. It doesn’t make fun of fat people. Go attack MTV. I’ve never seen a network allow programming and endorses such crap that degrades women and overweight people. Disgusting.
All that said, I read Maura’s post and like I said, I don’t give a shit about her OPINION. What I give a shit about is her having an OPINION when she hasn’t seen the show.
You are all missing the point. These writers, “journalists” and bloggers, and even an editor-in-chief all have OPINIONS without ever seeing the show. That’s worrisome. Scary. And the problem with media today. All of you who claim to be media professionals who have commented on this show and even commented on Maura Kelly’s comment without having seen the show, should be fired. And your editors should be fired.
Here is my concern: young women read this magazine. With so many female teenagers struggling with depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation, anorexia, bulimia and plain old self-hatred, publishing this kind of size-related hate is absolutely unacceptable. If Marie Claire wants to “raise the self-esteem” of its readers, someone (ANYONE) should have proof-read this column. No young woman should believe that there are skinny, older, successful women judging them as they walk across the room. Furthermore, what right does Kelly have to judge overweight or even obese people as they walk across the room or go about their daily lives?
Unfortunately, I never subscribed to Marie Claire, so I will not have the satisfaction of unsubscribing.
This is a complete failure in empathy. I appreciate Kelly’s apology, but I do not believe that Marie Claire should have stood on her side. It shows me that the overarching belief of the magazine is that only thin women deserve to even walk across a room. Rather than sending the message that young women can look beautiful however much they weigh and whatever they look like.
I unsubscribed too. It’s a little ridiculous. I don’t want to support a magazine that boasts about how they promote self acceptance in women and then publishes an article like this. If the magazine wants to support the writer then need to be ready to take the fall for her too.
The comments have more fun…
Why her anorexia is better than obesity? If she is so concern about health issues (but she is not) anorexia mortality rate is much higher ( i am not sure, but somewhere around 80%) It is much higher than for obesity. And cost for care not a bit less for anorexia than for obesity, even much more. She just channels her mental sickness (anorexia is a mental problem) to other people. I understand that sickness is not the reason for denial of employment. Till the moment when this sickness goes out of control and affect the lives of other people. Please. Mary Claire, give her a good health coverage and send her to good clinic for cure before somebody take her writing serous enough to kill herself because she is to fat to live.
Only 2 % of Americans are anorexic, while 66 % of Americans are overweight or obese. The healthcare costs for obesity is higher than anorexia. There aren’t any scientific evidence stating that anorexia kills a person faster than obesity (since each person is different).
I don’t get why it was such a big deal. If everyone is in an outrage over it, where is the potential harm in her article? People write offensive things all the time, which then generates spirited and outraged debate (as evidenced by the unending comments). It’s a fashion magazine, created to enforce the fantasy of fashion and the idealistic lifestyles that sell clothes. All the theories around America’s weight “problem” aside, caveat emptor.
Words have consequences, and in the case of eating disorders, hurtful ones like these can serve as triggers for the unwanted behavior. As a supposedly recovering anorexic, the author should certainly have been aware of this. One respondent to the article claimed it had made her suicidal.
So yeah, it’s a big deal.
Not all skinny people are anorexic or have an eating disorder. Many large people have eating disorders as well. There are many large people that diet and some large people have anorexia. To equate skinny with anorexia and bulimia is absolutely insane because anyone can get the disorder, not just skinny people. It’s stupid how some people bash skinny women, when the article is about Marie Claire. Bash Maura Kelly and the magazine, not skinny people.
Obesity is a serious health issue. Let’s not pretend that it doesn’t exist. Why do people have to become P.C. instead of stating the truth? Why do people want to sugarcoat the truth? Obesity kills people.
Personally, I don’t think that Maura Kelly should be reprimanded for saying the truth about obese people. Let’s face it. Fat people aren’t pretty to look at it and fat people are harming their own health. Anyone who states that “beauty is on the inside” is spewing BS.
Why should the blogger apologize for her own opinion? She’s only stating the truth about fat people.
Marie Claire should not tolerate this offensive blog post. But, I feel the real problem with the show is that they ARE making overweight people entertainment. America should really be focusing on health, not making unhealthy images entertainment. I don’t like the show because I feel it encourages an unhealthy lifestyle and invites criticism of overweight people. The obesity epidemic isn’t funny.
Maura Kelly should appologize in public and resign if she hasn’t been fired already!
You can not speak your mind and then take it back.
Preparing for shitstorm, but I agree with the Marie Claire. In my opinion, I find it disturbing to see very very fat people. I’m not saying that morbidly obese,obese, or overweight people deserve anything less than anyone else; I have many overweight friends who are lovely. I’m saying that I,myself, don’t find obesity attractive… I don’t think the author of the article intended to imply that ‘fat people don’t deserve love or to be in public’… Its like today, you have to say ‘everyone is beautiful and perfect the way they are and I love everyone equally’, that’s not how it works. Everyone likes likes and dislikes and preferences. I don’t think the author of the article should be fired or sent hate mail, she was stating her preference (no matter how controversial)
Freedom of press whooo.
gee… now i feel SO much better! she said ‘sorry’!
i get it, that she loathes herself, because of her anorexia (or, perhaps, she really revels in the anorexia, knowing that she has a ‘quick fix’ whenever she wants to drop a dress size!!) but, i get it, that she’s incapable of any human feeling or sense of empathy. if she was wondering why she’s “never been in love” and why she’s still single, i’d make an educated guess that her emotional issues would be a large part of her problems.
at the point when she painted targets on the backs of each and every ‘fattie’ in the country, she made herself a legitimate target, as well….. so, she feels disgusted by anyone whose bmi exceeds a certain point? she feels nauseated when she sees any of us, or even has to think of us? well, all i can say to her, in reply is this…”hey maura!!! you’re looking pretty porky today!!! pretty soon, nobody will be able to tell the difference between you and the rest of us!!!” and hope that she kicks into anorectic overdrive!!!
Suppose I feel really strongly that people of some ethnic group are really ugly and therefore should not be models? Or that women are much less intelligent than men and therefore should not hold a job above waitress? Or that men are incapable of being warm and caring and should therefore never get custody of children? Or that old people are a waste of money and that therefore we should allow them to sink into poverty and illness? Or that the learning disabled should all be put in institutions?
Every one of these appalling opinions was held by a good portion of the public–and was sometimes even the “ruling opinion” at one time or another. Does that make them OK? Is it courageous to be an idiot?
I don’t know… for the record I’m technically “morbidly obese”. But that doesn’t mean I weigh 400 lbs. Right now I’m a size 16, but I’m 5.3 so that puts me in the morbid category (just under 200 lbs). I know for me (and ME ONLY) I am not healthy. I’m not really UNHEALTHY either, but I could be better. Could feel better.
My main thing with this blog or whatever is that it wasn’t about being healthy. There are tons of articles written all the time about the need for us as a nation to be healthy. But this wasn’t one of them. And it wasn’t a critique about the show either, as far as I can tell she never watched it (for the record neither have I). I’m not exactly sure what the point of this article was, other than to shout to the world that you…well that you’re rather immature, and uncaring, and that today is not one of your smart days. The words she used, the descriptions, they are all very offensive. When I read this it didn’t make me angry, it made me wonder if this chick doesn’t have an editor. Like who was asleep at the wheel or out to lunch when this post was approved? How many people read over this piece before it made it into the public domain? I wonder, because if it was just this one author then it is a smaller problem, but if it was multiple layers of people then it would be a major cultural problem within Marie Claire. Intolerance is never attractive, and it doesn’t matter how couture the clothes it’s wearing are.
Not to mention the…lack of common sense and empathy is the best way to put it. I do not know why any adult, no matter who they are, no matter what their past life experiences are, would think it is ok to speak this way about someone else. Didn’t she consider how it would make those actors feel if they read it? She probably wasn’t thinking about readers being offended, because she probably believes most of her readers are just like her. So perhaps her misjudgement on what her readers would and would not tolerate is understandable. But who would ever put anything out in public that would be this hurtful to someone else? She was talking about this show, which means she was talking about these actors specifically. I can’t imagine she would ever have said anything like this to their faces. Posting something on the internet really isn’t any different. You have no idea if the person you’re writing about will stumble across it or not.
That shows an appalling lack of good sense, common decency, and frankly class. One of the most surprising things about this opinion piece was just that, the lack of class shown by the author and by her editors. A publication like Marie Claire doesn’t strike me as a low class magazine. Most of its advertizers are pretty high level, right? So…why on earth would they think this is ok?
And the apology offered by the writer is less than satisfactory. I appreciate her gesture, but really…if you were truly sorry about something you put up on a website that was offensive wouldn’t you…oh I don’t know, take it down? Just leave the apology part? Why would you leave it up to offend yet MORE people unless you were fishing for attention and trying to create a “buzz”? That doesn’t make any sense.
Don’t get me wrong, I know taking it down from the official Marie Claire website would not remove it from the web, it’s been copied all over the place. But it would show that you were sincere when you said you regretted offending people.
And when the Editor in Chief is rather glib about the whole thing it shows again a certain lack of class. Whether or not you agree that the writer of the original peice was out of line, she as an editor should be more concerned with how it made other people feel. I understand it’s “exciting” or whatever that so many people have commented about the piece, but how exciting IS bad publicity? How exciting can it really be to have…well made a fool of yourself…in front of thousands of people?
Now please don’t misunderstand. I hardly think the Editor in Chief (or whatever her title is) has time to read EVERY opinion piece before it is posted. I am not holding her personally responsible for the article. What I think she IS responsible for is the way she handles the situation after its happened. Does she apologize for the magazine as a whole? Does she discipline the writer? Does she institute new policies and practices to make sure something like this does not happen again? Does she work to make sure the culture of her company is one of openness and tolerance?
Frankly I don’t know if she’s done any of these things. And that’s the problem, right there. Marie Claire’s relative silence on the issue makes it seem as if they think it is not important. That bothers me.
I choose to believe this author and her editors had a momentary lapse in judgment, and that they are basically good people (like most people). But they could probably use some coaching on public relations, and what is and is not acceptable for someone over the age of 10 to say in public. Thanks! :)