A local woman says after they initially declined photos showing her post-weight-loss body, Shape Magazine has decided to use the photos after all.
After Brooke Birmingham of Andalusia, Illinois, lost 170 pounds, she says the magazine wanted to feature her in their column about weight loss success stories. She supplied a photo of herself in a two-piece swimsuit, which shows excess skin around her waist which is common in rapid weight loss. Birmingham says the Shape reporter cited “editorial policy” and asked for a different photo.
Birmingham blogged about her experience, and her story quickly went viral.
A spokesperson for Shape denied any editorial policy about success story photos, and said the whole thing was “a result of a misunderstanding with a freelance writer,” and that “any indication that we would not run the piece with the photo provided was wrong,” according to a Buzzfeed post.
“I never thought that when I posted about me deciding to pull out from a story with Shape that it would go completely viral on the internet,” Birmingham later wrote. “I posted only to explain the situation, never for attention, never to bash Shape and never because I felt like I needed to whine.”
She met with Shape reps since the story went viral, and the two sides have apparently come to an agreement.
“I’m excited to now be working with Shape to feature women who have gone through an extreme weight loss and showing their readers what can happen not only physically, but also mentally when doing just that,” Birmingham blogged. “This is a good thing.”
Shape tweeted confirmation that Birmingham, and other women like her, will be featured in the future.
