A lot can happen in 140 characters—and many celebrities have learned that the hard way.
Before the age of iPhones, Snapchat and hashtags, famous faces connected with the public through scheduled interviews and speeches at award shows. Today, social media has gifted Hollywood’s elite with a direct line to fans—a connection that many have embraced in truly inventive ways, whether they are promoting their work, hosting Q & A sessions with followers or simply offering updates on what they ate for lunch.
However, as the old Spider Man adage warns, with great power comes great responsibility. Unfortunately, Twitter and Instagram did not come with user manuals and, as a result, some stars have committed social media faux pas on a global digital scale.
Most recently, after Kim Kardashian shared clips of Kanye West and Taylor Swift discussing lyrics for his track “Famous,” Selena Gomez took to Twitter to defend her “Bad Blood” pal. “There are more important things to talk about… Why can’t people use their voice for something that f–king matters?” she tweeted on her account, which has accumulated over 44 millions followers.
However, the message was met with backlash as fans questioned why Gomez hadn’t spoken publicly on social issues affecting the country, including the #BlackLivesMatter movement.
“Good question! Why haven’t you or Taylor not said a thing about #BlackLivesMatter or police brutality?” one fan responded. Gomez slammed the follower, responding “Oh lol so that means if I hashtag something I save lives? No, I could give two f—s about ‘sides.’ You don’t know what I do.” The songstress later deleted the comment, though fans have continued to criticize the remark. “I love you but how about you use it as well to talk about what matters? you haven’t spoke up about a lot of things,” another user replied.
Whether intentional or accidental, Gomez isn’t the first nor the last to get caught in one of a publicist’s worst nightmares. In late June, Grammy winner Justin Timberlake was moved by actor Jesse Williams‘ speech at the 2016 BET Awards, so he took to Twitter to call attention to the remarks. “@iJesseWilliams tho…#Inspired #BET2016,” the singer tweeted.
However, a follower responded to the statement, asking, “So does this mean you’re going to stop appropriating our music and culture? And apologize to Janet too. #BETAwards.” The fan was referencing Janet Jackson and their 2004 Super Bowl performance, which became an infamous moment in pop culture after Timberlake ripped Jackson’s top and flashed her breast on live television.
“Oh, you sweet soul. The more you realize that we are the same, the more we can have a conversation. Bye,” the “Can’t Stop the Feeling” star responded to the criticizer.
The response became a further point of contention for followers, so much so that Timberlake had to sign on to clarify. “I feel misunderstood. I responded to a specific tweet that wasn’t meant to be a general response. I shouldn’t have responded anyway…” he admitted. “I forget this forum sometimes… I was truly inspired by @iJesseWilliams speech because I really do feel that we are all one… A human race.”
“I apologize to anyone that felt I was out of turn. I have nothing but LOVE FOR YOU AND ALL OF US,” he concluded.
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In order to prevent angering fans and having to usher in a public apology, certain celebrities have developed their own strategies for staying afloat in the murky social media waters. Pop star Katy Perry has developed a simple system for managing her thoughts before they hit the Twittersphere: sleeping on it.
“I do this thing where I just save as draft. Save as draft and sleep—and then wake up and go, ‘Nah.’ It’s not worth it, you know?” she told The New York Times. “Or I just book my therapist.”
Adeleemploys a bit of a barrier system. “When Twitter first came out I was, like, drunk tweeting, and nearly put my foot in it quite a few times,” she told the BBC. “My management decided that you have to go through two people and then it has to be signed off by someone, but they’re all my tweets. No one writes my tweets. They just post them for me.”
Still, some celebrities escape the endless evaluation and critiquing that come with social media fame by avoiding it altogether. Less than a month ago, Demi Lovato, who has been staunchly outspoken on social media as of late, suddenly and unexplicably vowed to quit her accounts. “Damn I gotta quit sayin s–t. Bye Twitter,” she wrote in late June. “Why do people actually give a f–k what I say??”
However, as tricky and trying as the digital world may be for forthright stars, it seems the majority of them just can’t stay away—including Lovato, who returned to Twitter less than 24 hours later.
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