Vogue editor Elisabeth von Thurn und Taxis branded 'tasteless' after homeless Instagram picture row

The super-wealthy German journalist angered people by seeming to make fun of the homeless

(Julien M Hekimian/Getty Images)

Elisabeth von Thurn und Taxis, Vogue's editor at large, was at the centre of a row on Instagram after posting a photograph of a homeless woman reading the magazine.

Von Thurn und Taxis, who is descended from a wealthy and prestigious German family and was in Paris for fashion week, captioned the picture: "Paris is full of surprises...and @voguemagazine readers even in unexpected corners!"

Commenters described the picture and the caption as "tasteless", "awful" and "stupid", and von Thurn und Taxis subsequently deleted the post.

"I think this photo was taken in poor taste," read one. "Shame on you."

Fashion website Fashionista heavily criticised the post, saying that it was further proof that she was out of touch: "The things she writes, both in Vogue and on social media, often straddle the line between entertaining/aspirational and disturbingly out of touch," the website said. "On Saturday she crossed that line."

However, not everybody was up in arms, with some of her followers saying there was nothing wrong with the post. "Omg calm down. Even the homeless are allowed to have good taste," one said.

Von Thurn und Taxis apologised via Instagram on Sunday.

(Instagram)

She posted a picture of the River Seine and: "I wanted to extend my sincerest apologies for the offense my post has caused. Yours truly Elisabeth."

This wasn't enough of an apology for many, with the abuse still coming in thick and fast. One wrote: "You're a horrible person and I hope you lose your job. Have a great day."