She might boast over 13.8 million followers on Instagram, garner an average of 600,000 'likes' on her posts, and share her travels from Venice, Rome, Holland and New York to her fans across the world, but that doesn't mean model Bella Hadid is oblivious to the dangers and anxiety social media can put on a person.
In a recent interview with InStyle magazine, the 20-year-old Californian beauty has finally opened up about the hate she receives on social media platforms on a daily basis and how it makes her feel.
'I learn new things about myself every day because of the stories that are put out about me,' she says.
'They'll say that I had a conversation with someone I've never even met before. Or people will judge me for things I can't change. Imagine that somebody is telling you that you're a piece of sh— every day on social media. You kind of feel like, 'Well, am I a piece of s—?' You don't really know,' she adds.
Feeling powerless to confront her online bullies, the face of Dior Make-up admits she often wants to 'go to the house of that random person from Twitter who is in Missouri and tell them, 'I promise, I'm a nice person! We could be friends! It doesn't have to be like this!' But it's a very strange world.'
Earlier this year, Hadid – who doesn't count herself a celebrity ('I don't ever want to say that') – found herself caught up in the Fyre Festival scandal, scheduled to take place on the Bahamian island of Great Exuma during April and May but was indefinitely postponed after problems relating to security, food, accommodations and artist relations.
Along with several other celebrities, including Kendall Jenner and Emily Ratajkowski, Bella promoted the festival on social media, but following its cancellation and subsequent legal battles, was the only one to issue a public apology on Twitter (the tweet has since been removed).
She apologised to her fans, tweeting:
Even though this was not my project what so ever, nor was I informed about the production or process of the festival in any shape or form, I do know that it has always been out of great intent and they truly wanted all of us to have the time of our lives. I initially trusted this would be an amazing and memorable experience for all of us, which is why I agreed to do one promotion…not knowing about the disaster that was to come…I feel so sorry and badly because this is something I couldn't stand by, although of course if I would have known about the outcome, you would have all known too.
Explaining what she's learned from the incident and social media-endorsements, Bella admits: 'It's also a different kind of job that I don't do very often. Now I tag everything as an ad.'
Lesson learned, Bella.
Katie O'Malley is the Site Director on ELLE UK. On a daily basis you’ll find Katie managing all digital workflow, editing site, video and newsletter content, liaising with commercial and sales teams on new partnerships and deals (eg Nike, Tiffany & Co., Cartier etc), implementing new digital strategies and compiling in-depth data traffic, SEO and ecomm reports. In addition to appearing on the radio and on TV, as well as interviewing everyone from Oprah Winfrey to Rishi Sunak PM, Katie enjoys writing about lifestyle, culture, wellness, fitness, fashion, and more.
