Teen Vogue’s new editor Alexi McCammond has resigned less than two weeks after taking the job over anti-Asian tweets she wrote as a teenager which surfaced online and cost Conde Nast a seven-figure ad campaign.
McCammond’s resurfaced tweets include one in which she wrote: ‘Googling how to not wake up with swollen Asian eyes’.
Another now-deleted tweet read: ‘Give me a 2/10 on my chem problem, cross out all of my work and don’t explain what I did wrong… thanks a lot stupid Asian T.A. you’re great.’
They were written in 2011 and resurfaced after she was named as the new editor on March 5. It’s unclear if she ever started the job. On March 9, the tweets had gone viral and she was apologizing for them.
Conde Nast – which has a history of racism allegations -stood by her and allowed her to keep the position. Staffers were irate that she was allowed to keep her job and said it sent the wrong message during a time of increased attacks on American Asians but she stayed on.
They also complained that she was inexperienced, having never worked as an editor or manager before, and that there were other black women within Conde Nast who would have been better suited to the job.
They wrote an open letter demanding that she be replaced and also complained directly to CEO Robert Lynch.
Beauty store chain Ulta then pulled a seven-figure ad campaign with Teen Vogue over the scandal. There were also talks among sales teams that it could cost the company even more in advertising revenues.
It has also emerged that in an email to staff around the same time Conde Nast HR boss Stan Duncan revealed that Anna Wintour and CEO Roger Lynch knew about the decade-old racist tweets but hired her anyway. Since the tweets emerged, Wintour has been trying to save her job, according to The New York Times.
On Thursday, McCammond tweeted that she and the company were ‘parting ways’. It sparked a mixed reaction – some said it was appropriate given what she’d done but others called it cancel culture gone too far. They criticized Conde Nast for seemingly hanging her out to dry.
Teen Vogue editor Alexi McCammond has resigned over racist, anti-Asian tweets she wrote as a teenager surfaced online. It emerged on Thursday that Conde Nast boss Anna Wintour knew about the tweets but gave McCammond the job anyway
‘I want to be fully transparent with you about our decision-making process regarding her appointment.
‘When Alexi was was a teenager she made racially charged statements on social media about Asian people.
‘Alexi was straight forward and transparent about these posts during our interview process and through public apologies,’ HR boss Stan Duncan said in an internal memo.
‘Given her previous acknowledgement of these posts and her sincere apologies, in addition to her remarkable work in journalism elevating the voices of marginalized communities, we were looking forward to welcoming her into our community.
‘In addition, we were hopeful that Alexi would become part of our team to provide perspective and insight that is underrepresented throughout the media.
‘We were dedicated to making her successful in this role and spent time working with her, our company leadership and the Teen Vogue team to find the best path forward.
‘To that end, after speaking with Alexi this morning, we agreed that it was best to part ways, so as to not overshadow the important work happening at Teen Vogue,’ he went on.
McCammond is dating disgraced former Deputy White House Secretary TJ Ducklo who was fired after threatening to destroy a reporter if she exposed their relationship. Before working at Vogue, McCammond worked at Axios
In a Twitter statement on Thursday, McCammond said she and the company had decided to ‘part ways’.
McCammond’s resignation also comes after her boyfriend was fired from his role as Deputy White House Secretary for threatening to ‘destroy’ a female reporter if they exposed their relationship.
Before working at Vogue, McCammond was working as a political reporter at Axios.
On Thursday, amid a swell of outrage over anti-Asian violence after a gunman killed six Asian women at three massage parlors in Georgia, she said: ‘Hey there: I’ve decided to part ways with Condé Nast.’
My past tweets have overshadowed the work I’ve done to highlight the people and issues that I care about – issues that Teen Vogue has worked so tirelessly to share with the world – and so Conde Nast an I have decided to part ways.
‘I should not have tweeted what I did and I have taken full responsibility for that.
‘I look at my work and growth in the years since, and have redoubled my commitment to growing in the years to come as both a person and as a professional,’ she said.
McCammond issued a lengthy apology on March 9.
‘What an awful introduction we’ve had to each other this week.
‘This has been one of the hardest weeks of my life in large part because of the intense pain I know my words and my announcement have caused so many of you.
‘I’ve apologized for my past racist and homophobic tweets and will reiterate that there’s no excuse for perpetuating those awful stereotypes in any way,’ she said.
The tweets were all written in 2011, when she was in high school, long before she took a job in journalism.
Before Axios, she also worked at MSNBC.
Originally after the tweets surfaced, she called them ‘idiotic’ and ‘offensive’ but not racist.
She then came under pressure to acknowledge that they are racist from stars including Olivia Munn.
On March 11, Ulta halted advertising with Teen Vogue.
‘Diversity and inclusion have always been core values at Ulta Beauty.
‘We stand against racism in all forms and as we’ve publicly shared in our social channels, we stand in unity with the AAPI community.
‘We believe it’s important that our partners share our values.
‘Our discussions with Conde Nast are actively underway as we seek to better understand their next steps and determine ours,’ the beauty brand said in a statement.