It's just another day in the life of a celebrity, aka making apologies for a controversial Instagram post that really upset some fans. On Tuesday, Pretty Little Liars star Ashley Benson posted an Instagram of a Halloween costume. What's so wrong with that? Well, the costume in question was that of Cecil the Lion, or so it seemed. Apparently, Benson originally captioned the photo as a "Cecil the Lion costume," but after receiving backlash she changed it to just "this lion costume." Now, after making a lot of headlines and getting heat thrown her way, Ashley Benson is apologizing for the lion costume. On Wednesday, she shared the following apology on her social media accounts:
Yesterday’s post was in poor taste and I absolutely regret all of the hurt that photo caused. The caption that was posted was incorrect and my costume was not Cecil the Lion, when I saw that, I contacted my management who handled the post and had it immediately changed. I recognize that I am responsible for everything posted on my social accounts and this was an unfortunate oversight. I am a supporter of Animal conservation and I will be donating all proceeds of this deal to the World Wildlife Fund. I love you all and I apologize if I let you down.
First, at least she recognized the issue that caused so much criticism. However, I don't think she did it intentionally, but the apology is out there and now it's time to let it go and move on. With that said, some are still finding issue with Benson's statement.
Despite all those fans who've accepted her apology and don't even think she needed to make one, there are some people who are more concerned with the fact that she might not run her social media accounts all the time. Also, it remains unclear, but did she just throw her management under the bus and kind of blame them for the post? As she said, "I contacted my management team who handled the post and had it immediately changed." Does this mean they posted the "Cecil the Lion" caption? Does this mean they "handled" the post by correcting it to "this lion costume"?
It's not uncommon for celebrities to blame management when something goes wrong, which the 25-year-old actress could be doing here. Plus, there's a bulk of celebrities who have teams running their social media accounts, because, well, they are super busy. So, that really shouldn't come as a surprise. Take Scandal star Kerry Washington, whose "Krew" sometimes posts for her on Twitter. The difference here is that they let fans know when it's them sharing something. See here:
If the PLL star's management team helps run her accounts, then maybe they should follow in Washington's footsteps by letting fans know it's not Benson posting. Whether she did or didn't write the caption, at the end of the day, Benson did the right thing and issued an apology. It's clear that she didn't intend to offend anyone and it's extra clear that she heard the outcry loud and clear.
