In the newest The Kardashians trailer, Khloé Kardashian told Kim Kardashian that the public had no sympathy for her, following her statement in last year's Variety interview. To paraphrase, she said that women shouldn't be lazy; they should work as hard as they can instead. As the Kar-Jenners paraded around town, visiting various media outlets to promote The Kardashians on Hulu, Kim's remarks to Variety began to trigger backlash. While many fans believed that the famous family members staying out of the spotlight was good for their collective mental health and personal lives, Kim's bold statement hinted that she is definitely out of touch with the real world.
As The Kardashians season 2 approaches, fans are excited to see what the family has been up to. The hottest topic is undoubtedly Kim's relationship with Pete Davidson. Fans are more than ready for an inside look at the romance that got so much attention last year. As usual, the family has done an excellent job of distracting audiences from Kim's major media fumble, and Kourtney and Travis Barker's wedding drama was also in the mix. However, if the season two trailer is any indication, Kim will finally fully address the scandal, and any shame that she might feel about her offensive comments.
While sitting in the back of a car together, in typical Los Angeles traffic, as per Hulu at YouTube, Kim said, "we saw all the backlash" from the Variety interview," and Khloé commented, "nobody sympathizes with you." Kim's face got pale; then, audio from an interview echoed over a b-roll, with Kim saying, "I'm mortified. I do understand why people were upset." While she addressed the criticism in an interview on Good Morning America at YouTube, many felt that her apology fell flat. They thought that Kim was too focused on saving face, rather than digging into the real issues facing underpaid and overworked Americans.
Kim has gone above and beyond to reclaim her identity as a compassionate, intelligent, and hard-working businesswoman, amid her divorce from Kanye West. She is still pursuing a law degree. While Kim's learned a lot in recent years, and stepped into a more political role, her faux pas was a reminder that the Calabasas-based reality star-turned-prison reform activist is still learning and growing, just like everyone else. Many of the Kar-Jenner family's employees discussed poor pay and troubling working conditions, reinforcing that these issues are something Kim should be aware of.
Hopefully, Kim's decision to impose her own work ethic on the public, and the infuriated responses that followed, will receive nuanced coverage on The Kardashians. The assumption that many women in business weren't already working very hard was incredibly offensive. Furthermore, the recommendation that doing more is the only path to success showed that Kim is alienated from workers everywhere, who often feel that going the extra mile improves companies' bottom lines, but not their own careers. Season two should be a big opportunity for Kim to learn more about regular workers' experiences.
Sources: Hulu/YouTube