Don't mess with Marc Jacobs if you're not prepared for the repercussions: The designer posted a scathing open letter to writer Maureen Callahan on Instagram last night, in response to Callahan's New York Post takedown, published on Saturday. Callahan didn't mince words: Her piece, titled "What's wrong with Marc Jacobs? Mystery of business struggles, bizarre behavior" was an undeniably negative assessment of Jacobs as a boss — and as a person.
Callahan didn't actually speak to Jacobs for the feature; instead, she gathered a hit list of negative tidbits from other stories penned about the designer. Her dishy piece includes an exhaustive rehash of Jacobs' early days in fashion, including his struggles with drug addiction. (Last year, Callahan came out with Champagne Supernovas: Kate Moss, Marc Jacobs, Alexander McQueen, and the '90s Renegades Who Remade Fashion, so she's already done a deep dive into Jacobs' wilder days.) She also points out a mix of recent, unflattering rumors and facts about Jacobs, such as Adidas' lawsuit filed against the designer in April, and whisperings that Marc was actually fired from his role at Louis Vuitton.
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As for Jacobs' rebuttal, he definitely didn't hold back; he lashed out against the publication, calling it the "worlds [sic] worst, trashiest, and most irresponsible of 'newspapers' (LOL)!" He referred to Callahan as a "parasite" and not a "real writer." Jacobs wrote:
Girl, I think I understand your pain. You're a sick woman. It must be such a sad, unfulfilling and lonely existence to get paid for 'writing' (I use the term loosely) an article put together from out of context information 'written' by other journalists over a period of time, for different periodicals, in different countries.
Right after sharing his open letter, Jacobs posted a shot of a story from the Post's gossip section, Page Six, about his supposed "wild, 10-person orgy" and called out the unknown guest who leaked this "misinformation" to the press. (Note that Jacobs awesomely referred to this non-event as "MILD," which is pretty much just as casual as he's always been regarding moments of his sex life going public.)
Social media open letters are cropping up more than ever these days, sometimes making a case for change in the fashion industry, such as with Gigi Hadid's eloquent post about being fat-shamed. But could a heated squabble recorded on social media for posterity have its drawbacks? At least we now have the option to edit Instagram captions. Or, you know, delete posts entirely.