In an opinion piece published by the Sydney Morning Herald, journalist Andrew Hornery complained that he had made a “big mistake” in allowing Rebel Wilson two days to comment on his sexuality.
The Sydney Morning Herald has been criticized after journalist Andrew Hornery revealed that he planned to date Rebel Wilson before the actress made her sexuality public.
The 42-year-old took to Instagram on Thursday to announce her relationship with her new girlfriend, fashion designer Ramona Agruma.
“I thought I was looking for a Disney prince … but maybe what I really needed all this time was a Disney princess,” she captioned the photo along with a rainbow emoji and tag # loveislove.
But in an opinion piece published Saturday in the Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney’s private columnist, Mr. Hornery, complained that Mrs. Wilson only came out after he approached her for comment.
“In a perfect world, same-sex celebrity relationships should be a redundant concept in 2022. Love is love, right?” wrote Mr. Hornery.
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“So it was a great precaution and respect that this media sent an email to Rebel Wilson’s representatives on Thursday morning, giving him two days to discuss his new relationship with another woman, the clothing designer. of Ramona Agruma, before publishing a single word. “
He described it as a “big mistake” and accused Ms Wilson of choosing to “wander the story” to choose to go out on social media herself.
“Given the bitterness Wilson had complained about the poor journalistic standards when he successfully sued Women’s Day for defamation, his choice to ignore our discreet, genuine and honest inquiries was, according to our opinion, disappointing “, he continued.
Hornery argued that if she had gone out to the actress, it wouldn’t have been a big deal because “sexual orientation is no longer something to hide, even in Hollywood.”
“Until now, Wilson had publicly identified as a heterosexual woman. She is unlikely to have experienced the kind of discrimination, let alone homophobia – unconscious or overt – that unfortunately still affects so many gay, lesbian and non-gay people. heterosexuals, “he said.
In a previous article published by The Herald on Friday, Hornery wrote that Ms. Wilson “ignored requests for comment” about their relationship, rather than opting “to make the revelations herself on social media.”
Both the Herald and Mr. Hornery have received a major backlash online after social media users accused them of forcing Ms. Wilson out.
“The publication sent a message to Rebel Wilson saying she would be fired in two days, and now she is complaining that she herself decided to announce her relationship with a woman. Very surprising,” wrote BBC journalist Megha Mohan.
“I’m very upset with this piece of Andrew Hornery’s Sydney Morning Herald. Did Wilson choose to look at the story?” it was “your choice to ignore your queries.” Grow up, ”ABC Radio journalist Dan Cox said.
“I’m much more than upset about this. It turns out that Rebel Wilson just came out to avoid being forcibly expelled and now this newspaper is angry with her for ruining her scoop? So they wrote this mess?” read another tweet.
Sydney Morning Herald editor Bevan Shields said he had read the comments on the article “up close”.
“To say that the Herald Wilson “extreme” is wrong, “Bevans wrote in a note from the editor.
“As other mastheads do every day, we only asked questions, and as a standard practice, it included a deadline for an answer. I hadn’t made a decision on whether or what to post, and the Herald’s decision on what “I would have been informed of any response. Wilson provided.”
In May, Ms. Wilson said she was “happily in a relationship” with someone she had met “through a friend,” but did not delve further.
Did he say on the dating podcast Up? entered and exited the Raya dating app before actor Hugh Sheridan created it with another friend.
“I’ve known each other for at least five years each, and he said, ‘Yeah, I think you’re two right,’ and then we did, ‘” he said.
Mrs. Wilson had a previous relationship with American businessman Jacob Busch, heir to the Anheuser-Busch fortune, but the couple separated in February 2021.
SkyNews.com.au has approached a representative of Ms. Wilson to comment.