The downside of social media
Cancel culture has taken the online world by storm. The media’s favorite content creators have received a lot of hate from society without explanation. Celebrities and content creators who have been considered canceled are shunned by the rest of the world.
Cancel culture has caused great chaos for people with platforms. It causes careers to plummet because brand deals see the negative PR and start to drop them. Then, it is harder for the them to receive gigs, sponsorships, contracts, or any sort of business deals. Hundreds of brands do not want to be associated with the negative feedback the celebrity is getting.
Take James Charles, an American makeup artist, for example. He first had backlash from his old racist tweets about the Ebola virus and Africa. Since his first controversy, he has had plenty more from $500 VIP packages to grooming a minor, Charles has a career full of problematic scandals.
The media will believe anything regardless of if it is true or not, causing influencers’ and celebrities’ careers to get ruined in an instant without a second thought or remorse. People will blindly believe anything rather than fact-check it.
However, these accusations could come out as true, just not recent at all. Lots of controversy starts from users digging up reasons to cancel an influencer, from old tweets to pictures from a decade ago, anything could be used against them. Most people understand that someone ten years ago is not the same person they are now. Even though this should be common knowledge, the media will stop at nothing to bring someone’s success down. People often bring up things celebrities or influencers have said as teenagers.
Another instance is, Doja Cat, an American pop singer, was canceled for multiple problematic actions that she had done years before her fame. She has been accused of being homophobic, saying slurs she can’t reclaim, and even being racist. The internet was full of #DojaCatIsOverParty hashtags and screenshots of proof of her wrongful acts, which she later apologized for.
This shows that humans grow and change immensely in this time gate, yet the media feels as if this is not the case, again causing one’s career to go downhill. It gives the idea that people with a platform are not allowed to make mistakes even though humans are nowhere near perfect, causing influencers to get major backlash from cancel culture.
In the eyes of the public, celebrities must always be on their best behavior. Sometimes being on their best behavior is not enough. Famous celebrities or influencers can be canceled for something they did years ago, regardless of if they have a big or small platform. It may be unfair sometimes, but this is the internet.
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