Topline
Former Bachelorette contestant Josh Seiter said he is “alive and well” in a video on Instagram Tuesday, after a phony death announcement posted to his Instagram account by an alleged hacker led to widespread reports earlier this week the one-time reality TV star had died following a battle with mental illness.
Josh Seiter claimed his Instagram account was hacked for 24 hours and someone else posted a message … [+]
Key Facts
Seiter, 36, said his Instagram account was hacked for the last 24 hours and someone else, not him, posted a since-deleted message announcing his death.
The former Bachelorette contestant said he had been trying “desperately” to get back into his account and only recently got access.
Seiter said he and his team are going to try to identify who is behind this hacking and apologized for the confusion.
Crucial Quote
“Someone was playing a cruel joke and mocking my mental illness and the struggles I’ve gone through with depression and suicide attempts and I’m sorry for all the pain they caused when they made that post,” Seiter said in a video he posted to Instagram on Tuesday.
Key Background
Seiter currently works as a model and adult-film star. He was a contestant on Kaitlyn Bristowe’s season of The Bachelorette in 2015 and was eliminated the first week. On Monday, many major news outlets reported Seiter’s death following a written message posted on Seiter’s Instagram account claiming he had passed away. Seiter has been public about his struggles with mental health issues, noting that he’s survived suicide attempts and battled OCD and bipolar depression. He also discussed his sobriety journey on social media, posting a selfie in June with the caption, “Here’s to 3 years and 8 months of sobriety.” On Thursday, Seiter posted a selfie on Instagram with the capiton “Surviving depression and anxiety one day at a time with a smile.” That was the last social media post the star made before the post claiming he had died, leading many social media users to assume Seiter has succumbed to his mental illness.
Tangent
Earlier this summer, a similar incident ensued when controversial internet personality Lil Tay was reported dead and 24 hours later issued a statement insisting she was alive. The initial statement posted on her Instagram announced her “sudden and tragic passing” but she later claimed her account was hacked and used to spread “jarring misinformation,” according to a statement her family provided to TMZ.
Further Reading
The Brief Death (And Short Rebirth) of Lil Tay (Vanity Fair)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/anafaguy/2023/08/29/bachelorette-contestant-josh-seiter-very-much-alive-after-mass-media-coverage-of-his-death/