The expression “If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all” seems to have no bearing whatsoever on the world of social media. As soon as someone has an idea pop into their head, it’s online, and that often spells trouble. This is especially true for celebrities, who generally have about 10,000 followers for every
one a normal person has. The worst part of all is that if they were to put even five seconds of thought into the consequences of their actions–well, they’d probably still post whatever they were going to post because they love the attention. But since this feature depends on their impulsiveness, we’ll go ahead and let it slide.
Donald Sterling Gets Way Racist (Because of Instagram)
There has been no bigger controversy stemming from social media this year than that of the racist rantings of Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling. In case you somehow don’t know the story behind this media frenzy, Sterling told his girlfriend V. Stiviano that he didn’t want her bringing black people to games and was offended that she would pose for Instagram photos with the likes of NBA legend Magic Johnson and Dodgers outfielder Matt Kemp due to their skin color. Unfortunately for Sterling, the entire conversation was being recorded and soon leaked to TMZ, who then proceeded to spread the story like wildfire, prompting Sterling’s immediate ban from the league, as well as a $2.5 million fine–the largest ever issued by the NBA. Best of all, steps are now being taken to ensure he can’t even write the fine off as a business expense on his taxes.
Stephen Colbert Gets Sarcastic Racist on the Wrong Platform (Twitter)
If there is one thing to take away from this story, it’s that sarcasm (especially dealing with race) doesn’t translate well to the printed word. Stephen Colbert (or at least the person responsible for the Twitter handle @ColbertReport) was dealt that universal truth the hard way on March 27th after transcribing a quote from the previous night’s show, which read “I am willing to show #Asian community I care by introducing the Ching-Chong Ding-Dong Foundation for Sensitivity to Orientals or Whatever.” This lead to a huge uproar, even prompting a hashtag campaign to #CancelColbert. Of course, audibly and in context the joke made perfect sense and was not offensive at all, but still lead to @ColbertReport deleting their account. (Side note: @ColbertReport is not even associated with Stephen Colbert or his show, making the outrage all the more outrageous.)
Willow Smith Poses With Shirtless Adult (Instagram)
This controversy, which took root on May 7th, has people a bit more on the fence than our first two, but with good reason. The picture at the center of the debate, which was originally posted on actor Moises Arias’ Instagram account, shows the 20-year-old laying shirtless in a bed with Will and Jada Pinkett Smith’s fully clothed 13-year-old daughter Willow. While that in and of itself may not seem like a big deal on paper, it is also worth noting that the pair are dating each other. While both parents are fully aware of the situation and claim they find nothing wrong with the photo, as it is in no way sexually explicit by any rational standards, most naysayers seem to be simply creeped out by the age difference between the two. How do a 13-year-old and 20-year-old come to date in the first place? While Arias is said to be a longtime friend of the family, that is still not silencing criticism on the matter. (UPDATE: Will and Jada Pinkett Smith are now under investigation by child services on account of this photo going viral.)
James Franco Makes Some Minor Judgment Calls (Instagram)
Yes, that subheadline comes pun intended. Actor James Franco has been in the hot seat since the beginning of March after a well-documented attempt at picking up a 17-year-old girl on Instagram. While most people have since dismissed the whole thing as simply Franco being himself, his bizarre behavior on Instagram didn’t end there. While most celebrities caught up in a scandal such as this might delete their account, or at the very least lay low for a spell, Franco seems to be taking the opposite approach. Most recently, he posted a semi-nude photo of himself, claiming to simply be interested, yet never putting much thought into, the social media outlet. We’re guessing this isn’t the last of his strange behavior, both on and off the site.
Seth Rogen Hates on Justin Bieber/Nancy Grace (Twitter)
Wherever there is James Franco, Seth Rogen is often lurking nearby, and vice versa. But while Franco is causing a stir putting his body and warped mind on display for the world to see, Rogen is making news by simply telling it like it is, or at least how he sees it. When it comes to his distaste for Nancy Grace, it’s a fairly simple concept. Grace has been campaigning against marijuana on Twitter, posting #PotToBlame? after tweets detailing an incident in Colorado involving a man smoking marijuana who then shot his wife. Rogen, a huge advocate for marijuana, simply replied to one of her tweets with “you are a fucking dumbass.”
As for the Bieber feud, it would probably be easiest to simply listen to the audio file here, where Rogen explains his disgust with Bieber to Howard Stern, and the reasons that he finds the young pop star to be a piece of shit.
Both Grace and Bieber have since responded to Rogen, with neither person really stirring the pot much more. We still got our eyes on Bieber, though. We have a feeling he won’t just shut up and let it go.
Jared Padalecki Criticizes the Decisions of the Deceased (Twitter)
We want to give actor Jared Padalecki the benefit of the doubt on this one, as we are pretty sure we see where he was coming from. However, the way the “Supernatural” star went about addressing the death of actor Philip Seymour Hoffman on his Twitter page was all wrong, calling his untimely passing both “senseless” and “stupid” on the very same day he died. While he later clarified that he was referring to throwing one’s life away to drugs, it was mostly the “stupid” crack that angered and offended fans of Seymour Hoffman. Padelecki has kept the controversy down since, but still made sure to voice his opinion on the Kimye Vogue cover, because that’s something to get furious about. You know what, we take back that “benefit of the doubt” part.
Shaq Mocks Disabled Man (Instagram)
If there is one type of person who is almost universally hated, it’s a bully. While it’s one thing in high school, it’s a completely different story as an adult, especially when it involves mocking a disabled person. But that didn’t stop Shaquille O’Neal from posting perhaps one of the most tasteless photos of the year, mimicking a fan’s selfie who suffers from a disorder known as ectodermal dysplasia, which causes his teeth and hair to grow abnormally. It is unclear whether or not Shaq actually knew that the man he was picking on, Jahmel Binion, was afflicted with the rare disorder, but we can’t help but think that you should always err on the side of caution in that position, especially as a celebrity. Shaq has since tweeted that he personally apologized to Binion, but a part of us still thinks we need to give him some Ohio justice.
Kobe Pokes the Bear of Controversial Subjects (Twitter)
When it comes to the case of the now infamous Trayvon Martin shooting, most would probably recommend, especially to celebrities, that they tread lightly on the subject, as it is still a hot-button issue that you shouldn’t voice opinions on unless you are ready for the backlash. Yet, in an interview with The New Yorker back in April, Kobe Bryant made comments insinuating that when the Miami Heat posed in hoodies in support of Martin, it was simply the team coming to his aid because he was black. Sure enough, social media backlash ensued, prompting Bryant to defend himself. Luckily, even when Dwyane Wade later voiced his response, the situation never got as hairy as it easily could have.
Floyd Mayweather Makes Abortion Even More Personal (Facebook)
Floyd Mayweather is no stranger to controversy, so after Donald Sterling was banned from the NBA, the rumor that he was interested in buying the Clippers sounded, at the very least, interesting. But Mayweather never manages to stay out of trouble for long, and soon enough, the rumors of his possible acquisition of the NBA team were overshadowed when he took to Facebook after a very public breakup from fiancee, Shantel Jackson, and posted pictures of her supposed ultrasound. Where things take an unexpected turn is that he used the photo as a means to tell the public that the reason for their split was because she aborted their twins. Go ahead and let that sink in. The man divulged the personal medical information of his ex simply because the avenue was there and he felt like it. At least in this situation, everyone is pretty much on the same page that the dude is a genuine scumbag.
Patton Oswalt Mocks It All (Twitter)
Just so we end things on a somewhat lighter note, we decided to cap things off with a little Twitter experiment gone awry from comedian, Patton Oswalt. And by awry, we mean exactly as he planned. On May 5th, Oswalt began tweeting apologies to offensive tweets he had just deleted. Of course, the catch was that these tweets never actually existed, and he merely insinuated that they were offensive to see how his followers would react. Of course, like a large number of people on the internet who don’t understand humor, many were horribly offended by statements that were never even constructed in the realm of reality. Hence, the funniest Twitter controversy of the year was born, and you’re pretty much caught up on what you’ve missed since January.
