Facebook's founding president Sean Parker has spoken out against criticism from the world's media of his Californian Lord of the Rings themed wedding featured in Vanity Fair.He wrote a 9,500 word letter ranting about the state of journalism, environmentalism and self-chastised his part in helping to create an internet culture that has turned against him.The Napster co-founder claims that all reports of his fantasy-themed wedding on 1 June to wed his singer-songwriter sweetheart Alexandra Lenas were incorrect and that media coverage almost forced the couple to cancel their nuptials.
The internet tycoon married his bride in the redwood forests of Big Sur at the Ventana Inn & Spa, costing upwards of $4.5 million (£3 million) with 364 guests including Emma Watson, Twitter founder Jack Dorsey and Olivia Munn who all attended the marriage in medieval-themed attire.More than 1,000 bottles of wine were reported to have been bought for the mythical wedding, with 450 members of staff, 100 artisans, 10 rabbits, five goats and a pony in attendance. The bride wore an Elie Saab dress for the ceremony, changing into a slim-line dress for the evening while her mother and sister chose Marchesa gowns. The couple were later serenaded by Sting as they enjoyed a medieval-themed feast including a hog-roast on a spit.
© Photo: Getty ImagesSean paid a reported $2.5million (£1.6 million) in fines and donations to the Californian Coastal Commission for his 'high fantasy' ceremony which he admits was a "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to force 364 otherwise self-respecting adults to dress up in elaborate fantasy-inspired costumes," designed by Academy Award winner Ngila Dickson.The lengthy article called 'Weddings used to be sacred and other lessons about internet journalism' describes Sean as a hopeless romantic and how him and his wife had been fantasising about their enchanted wedding in the forest since they fell in love five years ago.Despite having their dream wedding, the internet mogul opens up about the horrible criticism and insults that the couple faced following their big day, calling their critics "hate-mongers. "Denying reports that the couple destroyed the local forest for their Lord of the Rings inspired wedding, Sean emphasizes the effort that him and his wife went to in order to protect the Redwood Forest. "Because we wanted to avoid any harm to the forest, we asked the Save the Redwoods League to send their Director of Science, Emily Burns, down to the site to advise our landscape architect on 'best practices' for working within the forest," Sean wrote.He highlights how "nobody chooses to get married in a redwood forest unless they love redwood forests," and that he never intended to cause any ecological damage to the forrest with the building of artificial ponds and bridges.
