TMZ is facing backlash for posting what it alleged were photos of Liam Payne‘s body while covering the singer’s tragic death. The tabloid has since removed the pictures from the article. Many users on X (formerly Twitter) have accused the outlet of negligence by posting the pictures, with some calling it “shameless,” “irresponsible,” and “gross.”
TMZ shared One Direction star Liam Payne’s body photos from Buenos Aires hotel deck
TMZ covered the news of former One Direction star Liam Payne’s death and posted photos of his dead body in their article. Payne died on Wednesday after reportedly falling from the third-floor balcony of a Buenos Aires hotel in Argentina. Police confirmed that they discovered his body after responding to the hotel manager’s emergency call. The unfortunate news has since made global headlines with several celebrities paying tributes to the beloved singer.
Meanwhile, Payne’s fans and close ones called out TMZ for its controversial coverage of his death and for allegedly posting since-removed photos of the singer’s body from the hotel deck. On the U.K.’s popular radio network LBC, broadcaster Matt Charlton criticized the publication for carrying out “one of the most irresponsible bits of journalism I’ve ever seen.” He went on to say that the “photographer, the writer, the person who pressed publish on that story really should never work in the industry again.”
Singer Alessia Cara condemned TMZ with a “you’re gross” post on her X (formerly Twitter) account for the publishing of the edited photos of Liam Payne’s deceased body. Cara had previously performed alongside Payne and Zedd. Other users promptly responded to her post urging people to boycott the outlet and some called their action “disgusting” and “disrespectful.”
One user wrote, “TMZ posting part of a photo of Liam Payne’s dead body in an article announcing his death is beyond deplorable. I can’t tell if I’m losing my mind lately or if society has always been this overtly morally decrepit.” Meanwhile, many others urged the paparazzi to leave the late singer’s ex-fiancée, Maya Henry, alone.
Payne was 31 and father to a son, Bear Grey Payne, with his ex-girlfriend Cheryl Cole.
