Photoshop Strikes Again
Stories of celebrities altering photos for Instagram is in the news every other week. The latest of the accused is Kim Kardashian, who posted this image which had people commenting on her thin neck:
A New York Housewife Responds
One of the strongest voices reacting to the photo editing controversy is none other than Real Housewives of New York star Bethenny Frankel. Taking to Instagram with a lengthy statement, the Housewife did not mince words when responding to editing accusations as she shared an example of what she would look like with the help of Photoshop:
This is NOT what I look like…and you know that bc I’m not vain and show you the real me. But if I posted a version of this every day you might start to believe that it might be. This is just how distorted this has all gotten…
Filtering is lying: it is deceptive. It makes women feel badly about themselves. It makes young girls insecure and obsessed with an unattainable perfection. It makes middle aged women and mothers feel insecure about themselves. This creates a false ideal for men. It’s the opposite of inspirational. It’s destructive. It’s irresponsible. It’s insecure and it’s inaccurate. There is a line between making an effort to look pretty and an outright falsehood.
Swipe to see what I really look like👉🏼 #instagramvsreality #thisisme #speakyourtruth #liveauthentic
Frankel’s post hit over 150,000 likes. Many users applauded her for speaking out about the harmful effects caused by celebrities known for photoshopping their social media content.
Bethenny’s TMZ Rant
Taking things one step further, Bethenny continued her attack of Photoshopping celebs to none other than TMZ — and this time she zeroed in on the Kardashian family specifically.
Watch below as the Skinnygirl mogul goes off on not just Kim, but Khloe and Kylie too! Bethenny says the sisters are “making American mothers feel terrible about their natural bodies by using their wealth to get cosmetic surgeries.” She also accused them of “(hiring) professionals to edit their pictures in a way that makes people compare themselves to unattainable beauty.”
While it’s good this message is coming now, Frankel has had to answer for a few of her own fat-shaming accusations in the past.
Beyond the Skinnygirl Brand
Bethenny may be a champion for body positivity now, buy the founder of the controversially named Skinnygirl cocktail brand has been questioned about her true thoughts in the past.
On the podcast Unstyled with host Christene Barberich, the celebrity defended her brand name — even going as far as to say she’d never change it. The star is convinced that women of all sizes support the brand, ‘larger’ women in particular.
“It’s for all shapes, all sizes, and there are no plus sizes, everybody’s together,” explained Frankel. “But girls who are larger women want it more. They love it. They get that it’s a spirit. That it’s a lifestyle. That it’s not taking yourself too seriously.”
The issue of women editing their photos for social media is controversial and not to be taken lightly. Anyone who champions for people being authentic ultimately has our support.
Ashley Marie is a writer for Starcasm and the personality behind Twitter’s RealityByAshley. You can contact Ashley via Twitter or email at realitybyashley(at)gmail.com
Asa Hawks is a writer and editor for Starcasm. You can contact Asa via Twitter, Facebook, or email at starcasmtips(at)yahoo.com
