Three weeks ago, a Nashville-based Instagram influencer got into an accident while riding her motorcycle. Tiffany Mitchell posted a series of photographs on Instagram that show her lying on the road after the accident. According to Metro, Tiffany claimed in her Instagram post that the pictures were clicked by her friend, a professional photographer.
However, many Instagram users slammed her for "glamourising" an accident. Others accused her of staging the motorcycle crash for 'likes'. Some also found a water bottle in the photographs suspicious and accused her of product placement.
An Instagram influencer named Tiffany s getting heat for turning her recent minor motorcycle accident into a PHOTO SHOOT. She had a friend who was a photographer with her at the time, and that friend took artsy photos of Tiffany in pain . . . which Tiffany then put on Instagram. pic.twitter.com/7E1Vpryzsg
— Dave Ryan (@daveryankdwb) August 21, 2019
Thank God, they the awareness of mind to have the product placement of the water.
— Mark Tonskin (@MTonskin) August 20, 2019
This accident looks so staged though
— Lauren O'Neil (@laurenonizzle) August 20, 2019
I'm so confused about the a) lack of proper leathers. Surely she would have lost far more skin. And if she was brought up on bikes, she should know better than to not wear them. B) the fact her helmet is spotless (which should not have been removed - again, raised round bikes...
— Tess Blanchflower ???? (@tishtoshtess) August 20, 2019
As someone who lost a family member in a bike accident last year I find this hugely insulting. Glamorising an accident that can be tragic gives the unrealistic expectation that it's okay if you have an accident as it will look this 'perfect' when that is so far from the truth
— Lady Writes (@LadyWrites_Blog) August 20, 2019
Tiffany archived her post, made on July 31, after receiving massive backlash. However, on Wednesday, she addressed the issue in a new Instagram post and denied the allegations.
"I've been accused of staging the accident to get attention, using it as a product placement opportunity with a water company, and other things I can't even wrap my head around," wrote Tiffany. "Accusing someone of faking or exploiting an accident is extremely serious-because what if you're wrong?
"It really happened to me, and I was scared. I really was injured and had to recover," she said.
She also defended her decision to share pictures of the motorcycle crash on Instagram and wrote: "When I found out my professional photographer friend who I'd been shooting with earlier took photos of everything, I was completely moved. I shared this on my feed with humans who have been on a journey with me for years because I knew they would understand what it meant to me..."
Read her post below:
Smartwater, the company whose water bottle was visible in Tiffany's pictures, confirmed to BuzzFeed News that they do not have a partnership with her.
Just a few days ago, a Florida-based Instagram influencer was called out by her own sister for faking a hiking picture.
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