Martha Stewart posts and deletes Halloween costume as 'hungry' poor person and sparks outrage
Martha Stewart has removed a Halloween photo from social media after her costume, which portrayed a person asking for food, prompted criticism from people who said it made light of poverty.
The 85-year-old lifestyle personality reportedly shared the image as part of an Instagram carousel promoting her candles sold through QVC.
It was deleted soon after it appeared, but screenshots circulated online.
The image showed Stewart in distressed clothing, with dirt on her face, holding a clipboard bearing the message: "I AM HUNGRY HELP ME!" The choice of costume, and its appearance in a product promotion, became the focus of the reaction.
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Why Martha Stewart's Halloween costume drew backlash
Critics questioned the decision to portray someone experiencing hunger as a Halloween character. The response was also shaped by Stewart's considerable wealth: TMZ put her estimated net worth at $400 million.
Some social media users described the costume as 'out of touch,' 'offensive' and 'gross'.
The post was also discussed on Reddit, where users shared their criticism after the original image had disappeared from Stewart's Instagram account. It is still however, up on her Facebook.
The commercial context added another point of contention. The carousel was reportedly promoting Stewart's QVC candles, with the caption presenting the products as suitable for Halloween.
Some commenters objected to the juxtaposition of a depiction of hunger with an advertisement for a lifestyle product.
Stewart has not publicly commented on the criticism, and it is not clear from the reports why she removed the image.
The post's deletion did not prevent it from continuing to circulate, as users had saved screenshots before it was taken down.
What was in Martha Stewart's deleted Instagram post
The episode comes after decades in which Stewart's Halloween looks have attracted attention.
She is known for elaborate costumes and has regularly used the holiday to showcase detailed, themed outfits.
The latest post has instead drawn scrutiny over the subject it depicted and the setting in which it appeared.
Stewart built her public profile through cooking, entertaining and home decor, expanding into magazines, cookbooks and television.
More recently, she has remained in the public eye through her friendship with Snoop Dogg, a Netflix documentary and her social media presence.
The backlash follows a period of renewed pop-culture interest in Stewart, but there has been no public response from the businesswoman addressing the deleted image.
Thomas Bamford