N-Word Scandal: Millionaire Gen Z Influencer Alix Earle Apologizes for Using Racial Slurs in Posts — 'No Excuse'
Alix Earle took to Instagram to apologize for using the N-word several times in 2014.
Aug. 27 2024, Published 9:00 a.m. ET
Millionaire influencer Alix Earle has apologized for using the N-word after her controversial and racist posts resurfaced online.
RadarOnline.com can reveal the 23-year-old Hot Mess podcast host and TikTok star admitted she used the racial slur several times and expressed regret in an Instagram message on Monday.
She wrote: "A couple of weeks ago, screenshots surfaced from my old ask.fm account showing me using a slur in the summer of 2014.
The millionaire Gen Z influencer posted this message to her Instagram Story on Monday.
"I am taking accountability and want to make it clear that I was 13 years old and did not understand the deeply offensive meaning behind that word.
"That is no excuse for using that word in any context or at any age. That is absolutely not the way I speak or what I stand for."
Earle, who was named to the Forbes 30 Under 30: Social Media list this year, also said she was "deeply sorry" her words "hurt many" and "led people to believe that I have any prejudice in my heart".
She continued: "I promise you that could not be further from the truth.
"My platform has always focused on positivity, entertainment, and uplifting others, and will continue to do so.
"I am sincerely sorry to those I have offended."
Earle used the N-word four times between June 28, 2014 and August 2, 2014.
Earle's N-word scandal first started in 2022 when screenshots of her posts were shared on the social media platform Reddit.
The screenshots gained more traction earlier this month when they resurfaced on Reddit and TikTok.
She wrote in one post dated June 25, 2014: "Take a joke n----."
Earle added in another dated July 28, 2014: "Umm n---- y do u care."
She faced backlash ahead of her apology and several followers flooded her Instagram to call the influencer out on her racist remarks and failure to immediately rectify the situation.
One user wrote: "So you don't care about how your black followers feel?"
Another added: "All you people who aren't black don't get to say that it was just a mistake."
According to Do We Know Them? hosts Jessi Smiles and Lily Marston, images of the Gen Z influencer using the N-word also appeared on a subreddit dedicated to their podcast.
On the August 12 episode of Do We Know Them? Smiles claimed Earle's lawyer "contacted us and said that we have violated their copyright".
Smiles, 31, said: "People posted screenshots of her racist posts in our subreddit, and her lawyer said that they have a trademark to that. We don't moderate it, we don’t have any access to it."
Earle was also accused of trademarking her racist posts – although she denied those allegations.
But the embattled content creator denied Smiles and Marston's trademark allegations in her Instagram apology this week.
Earle wrote: "In the absence of my addressing this, my silence allowed others to fill in the void with rumors that simply aren't true.
"One rumor in particular is that I tried to trademark my old posts, which is absolutely ridiculous and untrue."
The millionaire influencer, who first blew up on TikTok in 2022 when she opened up about her acne struggles, also denied rumors she was dropped by a brand partner over the N-word scandal.
She added: "Another is that a brand announced they are no longer working with me, even though we have never been in conversations with them about a partnership in any capacity."
Earle, 23, blew up on TikTok in 2022 and then was named on the Forbes 30 Under 30: Social Media list earlier this year.
Earle, who was made the cover star of Sports Illustrated Swimsuit's first digital issue earlier this year, ended her Instagram post on Monday by once again apologizing for using the N-word several times in 2014.
She wrote: "Regardless of what's being said online, I wanted to come on here to address the facts and most importantly apologize."
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"I regret how I handled this situation, allowing too many people to talk me out of saying something for too long.
"I wasn’t sure how to handle it and unfortunately the advice I was given, although well intended, was wrong.
"There is no one to blame but myself for not standing my ground and going with my gut to speak right away."
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