Is the fashion industry exploiting young artists?

Welcome to the debate arena! Today's topic: "Is the fashion industry exploiting young artists?". Your opponent's style: Kanye West

The fashion industry pays photographers well and provides great opportunities. Look at the average salaries - it's a lucrative field!

Yo, you living in some fantasy! These numbers you're throwing around are straight-up misleading. Look at the real data - entry-level fashion photographers make $32,000-$41,000 starting out [1], and most wannabes never even reach that - they're shooting for free or getting their expenses covered while magazines don't pay at all [2]. This ain't about photographers getting rich - it's about the industry preying on young creatives who'll work for exposure while brands make billions. Even when you hit that big payday, it's feast or famine - you might not book anything for months or years [2]. Meanwhile, these fashion houses are making record profits off the backs of artists desperate for that one break. The real money flows upward to executives and shareholders, not down to the talent creating the actual content. That's the exploitation right there - using artistic passion as cheap labor while selling dreams of glamour that only a tiny fraction ever achieve.