Martha Stewart was accused of being tone deaf after an Instagram post featured a photo of her sipping an iceberg-chilled cocktail on board a cruise in the midst of a global climate crisis.
The author, businesswoman, and founder of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia was on vacation, voyaging through a fjord headed for Greenland on the luxury expedition ship Swan Hellenic, when she snapped some photos.
The 82-year-old lifestyle guru received backlash for her post, which read:
"End of the first zodiac cruise from @swanhelleniccruises into a very beautiful fjord on the east coast of Greenland."
"We actually captured a small iceberg for our cocktails tonight."
The carousel of photos first showed Stewart flaunting the cocktail with a piece from an iceberg retrieved from the icy still waters.
The next photo showed said iceberg, presented on a rolling cart.
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The third image was of fellow passengers wearing jackets and life vests and raising glasses of bubbly out on the ship's deck.
@marthastewart48/Instagram
The succession of photos that followed showed massive icebergs from a distance.
But photos of the convivial affair received a chilly reception online.
One disapproving person wrote:
"I generally love Martha and the excesses of her life because she's about beautiful gardens, homes, and food, but wealthy white people drinking their iceberg cocktails while the planet is in flames is a bit tone deaf."
Another advised Stewart against using the Greenland garnish out of concern for the environment.
"Martha the ice caps are melting don't put them in your drink."
More scrutiny echoing the same sentiment followed.
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However, not every comment was critical.
There was the contingent telling the majority to chill out.
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And there were others who questioned the drink's potability.
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@marthastewart48/Instagram
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Stewart's traveling companion, Brian Kelly, also posted a photo from the excursion but addressed the issue of climate change while marveling at Earth's natural wonders.
"Day one in Greenland was a lot like the Christmas Day as a kid- excitement followed by treasure after treasure," wrote Kelly.
"Icebergs are pieces of art and watching them float by never gets old."
"The magnitude of the glaciers is humbling and frankly hard to fully comprehend."
He added:
"Greenland has been impacted particularly hard by global warming, but its beauty still cannot be understated."
His post included a video taken from a dinghy getting a closer look at the glaciers on Prince Christian Sound, as well as several other photos of the ship.
Kelly's carousel of photos did not feature glacier-chilled drinks.