Text by LAURA MALAGRINO and MICHELLE KIM
Art by SAMANTHA HO
THE KARDASHIAN
KONUNDRUM
HIT REALITY SHOW ENDS BUT LEGACY LIVES ON
W
ITH THE FLICK OF A the superstar family millions of fans as well image is often misconstrued by the public, switch, a space once con- as nine Teen’s Choice Awards and eight where people fail to recognize the value of sumed by darkness is illu- E! People’s Choice the show. minated in seconds. Des- Awards. The show’s I almost felt empathy “One thing I olate, beige walls encompass a crib in the popularity pushed the always felt is that corner of the room, where a child waits. On Kardashian-Jenner for them, and that’s kind they were certainly the other side of the room, with one hand clan into mainstream of one of the reasons I misunderstood,” on the light switch, a woman sings. “Rise media, where the Romfh says. and shine.” family has taken ad- continued to watch the “When I would This four-second clip from reality TV vantage of their over- show. ” talk with the adults — KIRTANA ROMFH, junior in my life, their imstar Kylie Jenner’s YouTube channel has whelming success. garnered over 18.8 million views to date, Palo Alto High mediate reaction to going viral across platforms such as Twitter School junior Kirtana Romfh started talking about the Kardashians was, ‘Oh, and TikTok in videos where users remixed watching “KUWTK” in sixth grade, and my god, they’re always just sexualizing their Jenner’s vocals or addhas been staying up bodies, they use their bodies for money. ed comedic commen- I was just like ‘Well, to date ever since. They’re just fake.’” tary. A week after the “They do expevideo clip’s success, look at Kylie Jenner. rience a lot of back- Kapitalizing on TV fame Jenner released hood- She wears it. She looks lash online, especialJenner’s family shares the same talent ies with the words “rise ly because they’re of latching onto any opportunity for sucand shine” imprinted great. And that’s some- just so well known,” cess. Kim Kardashian, Jenner’s older sister, on the sleeves and filed thing I want to have.’” Romfh says. “I al- was ridiculed for her crying face on an epia trademark applicamost felt empathy sode of “Kourtney and Kim take New York” — KIRTANA ROMFH, junior for them, and that’s — one of the 12 spin-offs of “KUWTK.” tion for the phrase. Considering Jenkind of one of the Kardashian wasted no time in producing ner’s knack for selling products — with her reasons that I continued to watch the show, shirts, hoodies, iPhone cases and decals, all namesake brand, Kylie Cosmetics, valued and really continue to be into the Kar- adorned with her crying face. at $1.2 billion in January 2020 — it comes dashians.” The Kardashian-Jenner family boasts as no surprise that these hoodies sold out business ventures beyond these one-time almost immediately, according to technol- Kommon konceptions cash grabs, with Kim’s KKW Beauty and ogy news website The Verge. Jenner’s fame It seems as if the public has never SKIMS shapewear, Khloe’s Good American can be attributed to her role in the hit re- reached a consensus on what to think of the denim and Kylie’s Kylie Cosmetics among ality TV show, “Keeping up with the Kar- Kardashians. Though described as talentless the most successful. Not unlike their realdashians.” and undeserving by some and cunning en- ity TV show, the brands are popular and First airing on Oct. 14, 2007 and fin- trepreneurs by others, the magnitude of products often sell out instantly. The Karishing its final episode on June 10 this year, their success is undeniable. dashian-Jenner clan has built an empire of the 20 seasons of “KUWTK” have given According to Romfh, the Kardashians’ wealth, further propagated by their social
“
“
46 JUNE 2021
