Representation on Vogue Magazine

In this blog post, I will be looking at the representation of gender and race in Vogue Magazine. I chose to write about Vogue because I think they have become more diverse and cater to a wider audience in the 21st century, and have worked towards including people who have lacked representation previously

Race

In the past, the fashion industry (including fashion magazines like Vogue) had been criticized for not showing and did not make content aimed towards Black and Asian and other people of color (BIPOC). Between 2000 and 2005, only 3 out of 81 models were black, which wasn't a lot. Magazine covers were mostly of white women, and rarely included women of color. One of the many international editions of Vogue includes British Vogue. British Vogue has been called out for not showing people of color on the covers of the monthly issues, as well as lack of diversity of the editorial staff. In 2017, Edward Enninful, a Ghanian-British man made history as the first black man to become editor-in-chief of the magazine. He has made it his mission to include more black and other people of color on the cover, as well as hiring more people of color to become editorial members.

Gender

Vogue's target audience has predominantly been women between the ages of 18 to 34 years old. Primarily, Vogue covers have mainly included women (since the magazine is aimed for women) who are typically adults. As of 2022, only 10 men have been on the cover of the American edition. In November of 1992, actor Richard Gere became the first man to appear on the cover alongside model Cindy Crawford. In October 2020, singer Harry Styles wore a blue Gucci gown on the cover, being the first and only man on the cover to wear a dress, breaking barriers while doing so. On the British edition, actor Timothee Chalamet became the first man to cover solo on the magazine, in its 106 year old history.