Danielle Bernstein Can’t Stop Danielle Bernstein-ing
Unfortunately for us all.
Welcome back! I took a break last week because it all felt frivolous with everything going on in the world. (I’ll be including links for places to donate at the end of this newsletter, so I hope you stick around for that.)
In the meantime…
Known intellectual-property swiper Danielle Bernstein had to, of course, insert herself into the Ukraine conflict somehow. And let me preface this by saying: I do believe there were good intentions here, and I’d say she’s probably doing more than most influencers. THAT SAID…
The execution was way, way, way off.
She posted herself in a bikini—both on her feed and Instagram stories—with the caption, “When I say you can do BOTH, I truly mean it. You can post about fashion and post about world issues. You can raise awareness for your new collection while also raising money to give back. You can go about your day while also showing compassion and reaching out to others. What’s going on in the world right now is terrifying, and I know posting a bikini isn’t helping anyone—but you know what will? The proceeds from this swim launch going towards an on-the-ground organization in Ukraine. Stay tuned for more on the giveback for this collection [available March 1st]”
It’s the [available March 1st] for me.
Also, raising awareness for a swim collection? You raise awareness for social causes and, say, world injustices in order to educate and inform people. You do not raise awareness for bandeau tops!
Additionally… what amount of proceeds? What “on-the-ground” organization? Transparency is very necessary here.
Attempting to profit off a war and human rights crisis is objectively bad, and, Bernstein no longer gets the benefit of the doubt after how much the public has been familiarized with her long rap sheet. Commenters rightfully sounded off on the sheer, unadulterated tone-deafness.
“If she cared she’d give her own money vs. pushing consumers to purchase to only give 10–20% of profits.”
“Shilling swimsuits and claiming to donate an undisclosed percentage is not giving back. Please consider directing people to donate rather than sharing your swim line that you, too, will profit off of.”
“Is this satire? I require it to be satire.”
Sadly—and unsurprisingly—it was not satire. Bernstein ultimately turned off comments on the post and changed the caption:
“Almost every single launch has given back hundreds of thousands of dollars to an extremely important cause and I couldn’t be more proud of that. This will be no different. Two days ago our team sent $250,000 worth of refugee relief to Ukraine. Because of the current situation we are delaying the launch date and making a second donation of $5,000 to @globalempowerment mission TODAY, because we know it is needed NOW. Once we release the collection we will provide additional support and a third financial donation with a portion of the proceeds.”
But the saga doesn’t end there!
Ethical fashion influencer Heidi Kaluza (aka @the_rogue_essentials) ate Bernstein up and left no crumbs:
“THIS. IS. NOT. TRUE. Her team didn’t send $250k. She hosted an event that raised $250k. (Allegedly, I see no receipts.) And no info was shared about where it went. And there is no possible way her launches send hundreds of thousands of dollars every launch. Get off it and get your math right. The comments are turned off. Lots of people are working, donating, and sharing information without trying to profit from it at the same time. I forgot about this person for awhile and I’m sad she made her way back into my media sphere. Her business embodies so much of what’s wrong with influencing, including portraying a very false and misleading portrayal of impact.”
So, apparently Bernstein tried to exaggerate her level of philanthropy, too. And once again, I do commend her for doing anything at all—more than most people. But for someone who’s perpetually wondering why she receives so much backlash, she’s somehow still perpetually incapable of reading a room.
I Hate Euphoria
I can’t get over how much I hate it. I hate it, and yet I watch it every single week. And even if I choose not to, I won’t be able to escape it because Twitter erupts with think pieces, stupid takes, and spoilers (that have been retweeted 540,000 times somehow) every time an episode airs.
The beginning of this season was promising, and fans have praised many of the performances (specifically Zendaya’s in episode five, aka, Rue’s rock bottom). Concurrently, stories about a toxic workplace, uncomfortable nude scenes, and show creator Sam Levinson being generally weird have also leaked throughout the season.
The season finale left many gaping plot holes that many of us are seething at. These are some of my most pressing questions:
Doesn’t Rue still owe Laurie $10,000? What happened with that? They’ve made it very clear that Laurie is very capable of violence and/or human trafficking.
Who was the person scratching in Laurie’s locked chamber thing? We didn’t imagine that, right? The writers are gaslighting us at this point.
What was the point of Minka Kelly’s storyline with Maddy?
Did she put a hidden camera in her closet solely to be able to give Maddy the dress she wanted? That’s… boring. I’m sad at what could have been.
What happened with Kat? Her camgirl career? Why did Ethan get more screentime than her in the finale? (Rumor has it she feuded with Levinson who, in turn, essentially wrote her off the show. But still!)
Will we ever find out who the third Jacobs brother is?
It’s not Ashtray, is it?
And somehow, Elliott got 17 minutes for an “MTV Unplugged” performance? Why did they think we needed to hear the chorus three separate times? Apparently that song is now out on Spotify, but I refuse to give it any more airtime, so it will not be linked or embedded here.
If there’s a gaping hole in your television programming now that Love Is Blind (f*ck you, Shake) and Euphoria have ended, The Dropout starring Amanda Seyfried as Elizabeth Holmes is the exact opposite of Inventing Anna (in that it’s actually good). Seyfried plays the role with the precise amount of wide-eyed delusion and horse-girl energy.
Ways to Help Ukraine
Like many people, I’ve been emotional about what’s happening in Ukraine and endlessly doom-scrolling.
So, first of all, if you’re wondering where to get reliable updates, I highly recommend @mosheh. Second of all, I can’t stop thinking about how unfair it all is. I know “life isn’t fair,” but, yeah. By happenstance, many of us were born in a place that isn’t under siege, isn’t likely to be (knocks wood), and hasn’t been in a long time. If you’re reading this from the comfort of a safe, intact home, congrats. You won the genetic lottery, too.
So, if you’re wondering how to help from the comfort of your home, here are places you can donate to:
Doctors Without Borders is making sure Ukrainians in climate zones have access to healthcare.
The International Rescue Committee is working on the ground in Poland to help displaced Ukrainian families.
Project Hope is helping supply medical supplies and health screenings to Ukrainian refugees.