The social media starlet Essena O’Neill who made international headlines for quitting social media has been called out by other influencers who claim her initiative is a hoax.
O’Neill has taken to her website Let’s Be Game Changers saying she was sick of the headlines and the backlash she received from the viral post was exactly why she quit.
“’19 YEAR OLD INSTA CELEB BLAMES SOCIAL MEDIA FOR HER PROBLEMS’ That story goes global,” wrote O’Neill. “Not ‘Teen raises questions about transparency online and deceptive product placements’. Or ‘teen raises questions about animal agriculture’ ‘teen talks about reality behind constant edited life’ ‘teen talks about culture appropriation’.
“Looks like media want attention and a ‘hot story’, not real change. AM I THE ONLY ONE OVER THIS??? WHY NOT TALK ABOUT THINGS THAT REALLY MATTER???”
Two social media influencers, NinaAndRanda, claiming to be friends with O’Neill, posted a 15 minute clip about how it was all a hoax for O’Neill.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WB3HtCMfZic
Since the viral post, O’Neill has deleted her entire Instagram and YouTube account, meaning her original video on YouTube is no longer available.
Read more about what O’Neill said in her video here.
An now another social media influencer, fitness fan Kayla Itsines has taken to Instagram in response to the backlash, urging people to just be themselves and love themselves for it.