Being a good billionaire: The Kylie Jenner – Tony Stark conundrum
With the debut of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier came questions about how superheroes in the Marvel Universe make money. Should billionaire Tony Stark have been paying the Avengers’ wages this whole time? The question becomes muddled when makeup mogul Kylie Jenner, whose net worth is somewhere north of $900 million (or $1 billion, depending on where you look), solicited help from her fans when her makeup artist was in a car accident. She donated $5000, leading fans to wonder if she should have just paid the $60,000 herself.
In the interests of full transparency, it’s important to note that Tony Stark is a fictional character and that Kylie Jenner is a reality star turned mogul. But the question of what billionaires do with their money is something that is up for debate on a daily basis and it highlights the larger issue of the rich getting richer while many people struggle to get by.
Kylie Jenner’s makeup artist Samuel Rauda was injured in a car accident on March 14, and his family set up a GoFundMe to pay for his $60,000 in medical bills. Jenner posted the link on her Instagram stories, asking her fans to contribute. Later, it was revealed that Jenner donated $5,000 to the cause. (Any private contributions she might have made were not made public)
This led to instant blowback on social media. How could Jenner ask her fans to pay the bill when she has purses worth twice as much as the amount needed?
How could Jenner, who throws lavish parties for her young daughter and flaunts her wealth on social media, ask fans who buy her products to help her makeup artist when she’s reportedly making close to a half-million dollars every day?
When it comes to responsibility, there is no reason that Kylie Jenner is obligated to pay for Rauda’s medical bills. Just because she’s wealthy doesn’t make her responsible for other people’s expenses, and by all accounts $5,000 is a lot of money.
However, Jenner isn’t known for philanthropic endeavors. It’s not part of her brand. She might not be obligated to pay $60,000 for her makeup artist, but she should. If doing the right thing isn’t enough for her, then maybe the optics would help her see that it’s not a good look to ask people who already buy her products to pay for her friend who needs help.
As of this writing, the GoFundMe is over $100,000, a testament to Jenner’s followers, to be sure. It’s wonderful that he’s getting the help he needs. But Jenner’s involvement – or relative lack, thereof – just doesn’t sit well.
Are billionaires like Tony Stark or Kylie Jenner responsible for footing the bill?
Looking back at the series premiere of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Sam Wilson wasn’t denied a loan because he didn’t have any money. Prior to becoming the Falcon he had a job with income. The issue had many layers. He was applying for a loan with his sister, who was struggling financially. He’d been gone during the Blip for five years, so the bank saw him being without income for that time. It’s unclear whether he had any outside income as an Avenger. And the biggest reason he was denied a loan is tied to the systemic racism running rampant in the banking system that prevents Black families from getting the financial support they need.
People on social media immediately started debating whether Tony Stark, a billionaire, should have been paying the Avengers so that Sam wouldn’t need to take out a loan. The reality is that Stark funded most – if not all – of the Avengers’ technology. He built their headquarters – twice – and he also supported several philanthropic endeavors. He wasn’t even in charge of the Avengers, but he felt obligated to do everything he could to give them the best technology available.
Tony Stark might not have been paying the Avengers, but he was dishing out his own money to pay for their work while supporting people who needed help.
Thinking of Kylie Jenner’s present predicament, it makes you think back to Happy being injured in Iron Man 3. Though Happy was working and had insurance, if there were other expenses incurred from his injuries during the Mandarin’s attack, there is no question Tony would have paid for them. There would have been no GoFundMe. It would have been done.
The bottom line is that this is a really bad look for Kylie Jenner. It could have been a great story to hear how she’s using her vast wealth to support someone, and now it’s turned into a PR nightmare.
dark. Next. Key moment in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier leads to questions
There is a whole conversation to be had about the distribution of wealth in today’s society, universal healthcare and the need to make sure that people have access to the support they need. Until those problems are addressed, it’s possible to be a good billionaire just as it’s possible to be a bad billionaire. Tony Stark was a good billionaire. Kylie Jenner is a bad billionaire.