Where’s the Media Coverage of Maskless Met Gala Attendees?

Photo by Cindy Ord/MG21/Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue.

At this week’s Met Gala in New York City, attendees showed up in dresses both elegant and cringeworthy while not wearing masks.

Although, as reported in Vogue, gala guests were required to provide proof of vaccination or a negative PCR test the day before and were required to wear a mask indoors except while eating or drinking, there were attendees who were maskless in violation of Met and New York City mask mandates and CDC guidance.

The Met tweeted on Aug. 19, “In accordance with New York City mandate, starting today all visitors to The Met ages 12 and older must be vaccinated against COVID-19. Children younger than 12 must be accompanied by a vaccinated person. Masks are required for all visitors.”

In accordance with New York City mandate, starting today all visitors to The Met ages 12 and older must be vaccinated against COVID-19.

Children younger than 12 must be accompanied by a vaccinated person. Masks are required for all visitors.⁣⁣ pic.twitter.com/6T8jg3f68M

— The Metropolitan Museum of Art (@metmuseum) August 19, 2021

Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty Images.

Despite the elitists scolding everyday folks attending football games and other events and being maskless and calling for mask mandates in schools and other settings, too many of those same elitists attended the elitist gala on Monday while not wearing a mask. This included Reps. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), whose party has preached mask-wearing and other extraneous precautions even for the vaccinated. The celebrities walking the red carpet were inside a tent that led into the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Most mainstream media outlets gave a pass to the lack of mask wearing by gala attendees, while a few briefly mentioned it.

CNN and MSNBC briefly covered the gala, but did not mention the lack of mask wearing. CNN International on Tuesday had fawning analysis provided by Hala Basha-Gorani and Richard Quest. No criticism there of the lack of mask-wearing either.

The New York Times mentioned, “Invited guests were told they would be required to show proof of vaccination, receive a negative Covid-19 test and wear a mask at all times unless eating. (That last part hasn’t seemed to apply to the red — er, beige — carpet, where there have been more naked mouths photographed than masked faces.).” That was all. No criticism or further reporting or seeking comment about the lack of mask wearing by the attendees. Never mind that the outlet’s fashion director and chief fashion critic Vanessa Friedman had a fawning piece about the gala’s attendees that didn’t mention the absence of mask wearing.

Ditto The Washington Post, which wrote that “there were reminders that this was no ordinary gala. The most obvious were masks, though few wore them during cocktails. (Guests had been reminded beforehand that masks were required, unless eating or drinking.).” The Post also provided fawning after fawning article about the gala, omitting any mention of there being no mask wearing by attendees.

Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue.

At the end of the day, there’s no excuse for not following the rules whether it is not following mask requirements or those of journalism.

Watch above, via CNN International.

This is an opinion piece. The views expressed in this article are those of just the author.