Scarlett London , 24, from London's post was a paid partnership with Listerine. Photo / Instagram
Scarlett London , 24, from London's post was a paid partnership with Listerine. Photo / Instagram
A blogger has revealed she's received death threats after being mercilessly trolled over an Instagram snap of a "perfect morning" that wasn't all that it seemed.
Scarlett London , 24, from London posted a photo, which was a paid ad for Listerine, posing on her bed surrounded by heart-shaped balloonswith the caption: "The best of days start with a smile and positive thoughts. And pancakes. And strawberries. And bottomless tea."
However, commenters quickly noticed that the pancakes were, in fact, a plate of folded tortilla wraps, her cup of bottomless tea was empty the blanket on the end of her bed had her picture on it, reports the Daily Mail.
Scarlett received a flurry of criticism with even actress Amanda Abbington and Runnymede & Weybridge Labour Party Women's Officer June Tilbury joining in the online chorus by tweeting: "She's got bad breath. That's why she's alone."
Her photo has received thousands of comments across Instagram and Facebook, and Scarlett has revealed how the criticisms have escalated to abusive comments and bullying.
She told Femail: "Many to the effect of that I'm a danger to young women and should suffer, I should be stopped, I should suffocate on the balloons, I should kill myself because of how pathetic I am. But if I'm totally honest, those were the more tame of the bunch."
Scarlett's photos went viral after a Twitter user shared the snap, saying: "F*** off this is anybody's normal morning. Instagram is a ridiculous lie factory made to make us all feel inadequate."
His post was liked 89,000 times and people seemed to agree with the sentiment with one writing: "This is so ridiculous on so many levels. Everything in this picture is ridiculous and hella FAKE.
"I don't know where to start, the tortillas or the product placement."
Others accused Scarlett of selling a "false, unobtainable image to impressionable young people", saying it's just as bad as heavily airbrushed pictures in magazines.
"You can refer to yourself as a poor, bullied 'young girl' all you like but if you're going to effectively sell products to your followers, your methods are going to come under criticism."
Responding to the backlash, Scarlett begged people to consider that there's a real person behind the images before posting hurtful and abusive comments.
"In the last 48 hours, grown men & women, MPs, women's equality representatives, journalists, actresses and broadcasters have discovered my Instagram feed and decided to pick it apart online, in front of thousands," she said.
"I implore those mindlessly sharing this content to research who I am as a person, before they further drag my name and image through the mud. Yes, I do adverts on here, but only with brands I genuinely use and would spend money on myself. My feed isn't a place of reality.
"Sometimes my photos are whimsical and OTT and a little too pink, but I'm not presenting this as an 'idealistic' version of life that young girls should aspire to. Those who follow me will know my reality.
"I try to raise awareness for the digestive condition I suffer from, the same condition that years ago threatened me graduating from university. My Instagram has been an outlet to show you can be positive and have fun with life, despite this condition.
"I personally don't think my content is harmful to young girls but I do agree Instagram can present a false expectation for people to live up to. And I am wholeheartedly sorry if I've ever made anyone feel inadequate through my content. My life mission is quite the opposite.
"I am a strong 24-year-old woman who has experienced bullying in the past. I am and will be okay after this hideous experience. But another young girl or guy as the subject of a targeted hate campaign might not be okay. Please remember at the centre of of every viral storm is a human being."
