I constantly hear about a celebrity tweeting something offensive, racist, or ignorant. They do it knowing that moments later the media and fans around the world will see it and criticize them for the tweet. Celebrities know that an offensive, racist, or ignorant tweet is like gold to a journalist, and that a journalist will make a story out of it.
What I don’t understand is why celebrities apologize after receiving negative attention for their tweet. They aren’t sorry for their actions, and the apology is usually unsympathetic. In many cases celebrities only apologize because their PR person advises them to do so.
The most recent celebrity apology came from Patricia Heaton, the actress currently starring in the ABC sitcom, The Middle. After Sandra Fluke, a Georgetown law student, testified about the importance of health insurance covering birth control, Heaton made it clear on twitter that she didn’t agree with Fluke’s testimony. Heaton tweeted:
“G-Gal: you’ve given yer folks (a) great gift for Mother’s/Father’s Day! Got up in front of whole world & said I’m having tons of sex- pay 4 it!” and “If your parents have to pay for your birth control, maybe they should get a say in who u sleep with! Instant birth control!”
Heaton should have called her PR person and asked if the tweet was appropriate before posting it. She didn’t though. After receiving negative attention for her ignorant tweet, Heaton apologized. She sent out a tweet that said:
“I apologized to Ms Fluke last week. I may not agree with her views but I didn’t treat her with respect and I’m sorry. I was wrong. Mea Culpa
Was she really sorry? I doubt it! Her PR person probably gave her a call and told her to apologize.
Some celebrities forget that they are role models for millions of people, and everything they do is closely looked at. They should use social media to interact with their fans and build their own personal brand. Not to post offensive, racist, or ignorant things. I hope one day celebrities learn the proper way to use social media, because it’s a great tool, if used correctly!
Colliding Worlds 
Great post. I’ve enjoyed the blog so far as well. Should celebrities really have to apologize for tweeting how they feel though? Interesting question to examine.
Posted by bigsleep42 | March 13, 2012, 8:15 pm