Culture

Mamamia Is Under Fire For A “Cruel And Humiliating” Interview With Roxane Gay

"Shame on you, Mamamia." - Roxane Gay

by Matilda Dixon-Smith  13 June 2017
Mamamia

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Get ready to feel a whole lot of cringe! Mamamia and its founder Mia Freedman are receiving a tonne of blowback today over a podcast Freedman recorded with academic, author and feminist Roxane Gay.

Gay herself has spoken out against the whole thing, describing the experience as “cruel and humiliating” and now most of the Australian media is criticising the women’s website or just slowly, silently shaking their heads. Here’s the full breakdown:

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“A Shit Show”

Mia Freedman started the latest episode of her podcast with a lengthy pre-recorded intro about her interviewee, Roxane Gay. She discusses certain requests made by Gay’s publicists, including a requirement that Mamamia provide an appropriate chair for Gay, and her request not to be photographed or filmed. These details, Freedman said, “both broke my heart and opened my eyes”.

“I would normally never breach the confidence of what goes on behind the scenes when organising an interview, but in this case I’ve thought a lot about it and it’s a fundamental part of her story,” Freedman said. “You see, Roxane Gay is — I’m searching for the right word here, I don’t want to say ‘fat’ even though she uses the word ‘fat’ about herself — I’m going to use the official medical term, super morbidly obese.”

It’s worth noting that ‘fat’ is Gay’s preferred descriptor. The author does not seem to agree with Freedman’s statement that the tour was “a logistical nightmare for her” because of her size.

The story was accompanied by a similar story published on the Mamamia website, which has recently been removed. And, yup, you’d better believe that people are maaaaaaaaddddddddddd.

The most powerful responses to the podcast are coming from Roxane Gay herself. Gay has come out with some truly heartbreaking, strong responses to the podcast, which she called a “shit show”.

Retweeting the episode description, which questions whether the writer can fit into a lift or walk the necessary steps to the interview, Gay wrote “Shame on you @mamamia. I can walk a fucking mile”.

Gay was in Australia for the Sydney Writer’s Festival and several Melbourne literary events speaking about her upcoming memoir, Hunger. Though always strong-willed and no-bullshit, Gay is known as someone who is incredibly generous with her time and her good humour on long press tours.

Junkee has reached out to Gay for comment directly and not heard back, but judging by her tweets, she seems to be especially deflated by this experience:

It appears this isn’t the first time she’s spoken about this interview either.

Mia Freedman has not yet responded to the growing controversy.

Is There Any Lesson Here?

This is not the first time Mamamia has been accused of irresponsible journalistic practices. The publication and Freedman herself have previously faced a lot of criticism for not paying their freelance writers. She also, more recently, got dragged for outrageous comments about women not drinking as a rape deterrent. In an article for her website she alleged that there is a link between alcohol and sexual abuse, and suggested that, “I believe it’s crucial to educate girls about the link between alcohol and sexual assault and warn them about the increased risk to their safety that comes with getting wasted.” Which, hi, is essentially blaming victims for their own assaults.

Many find it hard to reconcile Mamamia’s feminist ethos with these types of controversies. A site that outwardly supports women should also pay them what they’re owed, and stand up for them in the face of sexual violence, and not call a fellow writer names or expose private requests made about her body.

Whether or not it was intentional, Freedman humiliated an intelligent and beloved woman, and for that the public (and the internet) will no doubt deliver consequences. But change will rest on Mamamia, and Freedman herself, ultimately learning from their mistakes.

It’s also worth pointing out that Freedman’s comments, which include describing Gay’s “imposing physical presence”, are just part of the broader deluge of absolute crap that fat women have to deal with every day from bigoted critics who seem to think another person’s body size is an imposition on them.

It’s perfectly reasonable for Gay to ask for a sturdy chair that will accomodate her during the interview. It’s completely acceptable for Gay to refuse to be filmed or photographed while in the Mamamia studio. She is an academic writer, not a celebrity; having her photo taken is not her job. And it was unquestionably poor form for Freedman to reveal the private communication between Gay and Mamamia.

Gay’s generous sharing of her body and herself in Hunger is not an open target for unbridled ridicule.

White Australian journalists have a chequered history when it comes to speaking to diverse writers with respect; we need to learn better how to engage with those artists generous enough to share themselves with us, instead of humiliating them. In the meantime, I propose you purchase Gay’s Hunger (or any of her other excellent books) to do some learning, and to show Gay a little solidarity.