Cosmo Pulls 'Bachelor' Cover After Victoria Fuller Modeled 'White Lives Matter' Clothing
Cosmo found out about Victoria modeling “White Lives Matter” clothing and decided to pull her cover
Fans of the ABC reality series The Bachelor have already had a time of this season. While the fireworks and drama are of epic level proportions, one contestant is being called out for her antics off-camera.
Contestant Victoria Fuller was set to grace the cover of Cosmopolitan’s next digital issue but her cover has since been pulled after editors discovered that she was affiliated with a clothing brand that featured the words “White Lives Matter.” Fuller’s partnership with the “Marlin Lives Matter” ad campaign sent fans reeling and it could cost her more than the Cosmo cover.
“Unequivocally, the White Lives Matter movement does not reflect the values of the Cosmo brand,” Cosmopolitan editor-in-chief Jessica Pels shared in a letter from the editor published online Monday night. “We stand in solidarity with Black Lives Matter, and any cause that fights to end injustices for people of color,” she said.
She continued: “When my team and I flew down to Costa Rica for our challenge, we weren’t told who our models were going to be. We didn’t even meet them until we were all on camera on-set, ready to start our shoot. So when it came time for me to choose the winner of the challenge—whose prize was a digital cover of Cosmo—all I knew about the contestants were their first names and the energy they conveyed through the camera lens.”
Pels said it wasn’t until weeks later she learned that Fuller had modeled for the ad campaign and she took swift action as a result. “My team and I had many long discussions about how we wanted to address this issue. We’d already printed the fashion shoot in our March issue, complete with an inset of the cover, and of course, the episode had already been filmed,” Pels stated. “Ultimately what felt right was choosing not to publish the digital cover on our website or social feeds, and simply being honest with you, the audience we respect, about what happened and where we stand.”
White Marlin Marina, who put out the ad campaign, also uses the phrases “White Lives Matter” and “Blue Lives Matter” to promote the conservation of certain types of fish, namely white marlin, but clearly they were making their feelings known about the “Black Lives Matter” movement as well.
Designer George Lamplugh said there should be no confusion and was adamant the shirts are referring to marlins only. “We’re promoting people to use circle hooks, to bring them in safely and to release them back. Marlin conservation has been going on for 100 years, and it’s an important issue.”
Regardless of intent, the stunt has landed Fuller in hot water with fans and the publishers of Cosmo.
