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Lady Gaga criticized for tweeting 'Pop Singers Don't Eat'

Lady Gaga usually draws positive attention for her role in promoting self-acceptance, yet a comment she posted on Twitter on Tuesday with the hashtag “PopSingersDontEat” has her army of followers questioning her sincerity.“Just killed back to back spin classes. Eating a salad dreaming of a cheeseburger #PopSingersDontEat #IWasBornThisWay,” the pop star wrote on her page.And in response, th
Daniel Roland / AFP - Getty Images / Today

Lady Gaga usually draws positive attention for her role in promoting self-acceptance, yet a comment she posted on Twitter on Tuesday with the hashtag “PopSingersDontEat” has her army of followers questioning her sincerity.

“Just killed back to back spin classes. Eating a salad dreaming of a cheeseburger #PopSingersDontEat #IWasBornThisWay,” the pop star wrote on her page.

And in response, the tweets came flying, with even media critics offering a response.

“As if girls dont have enough pressure without influential people like gaga tweeting things like that! SO irresponsible,” fan Aysha Falco commented on her Twitter page after initially responding directly to the singer, “@ladygaga why would you even promote a message like that?”

In her “Open Letter to Lady Gaga,” MTV writer Nicole James professed, “I totally get that it was (probably) mostly a joke, and that you actually do eat food items from time to time, but so many young dudes and dudettes turn to your Twitter page for inspiration and encouragement. And the thing about it is, you've accepted that role model position with open arms. You created an entire army of young fans who you go to bat for every day. You've done super great things with your Born This Way Foundation, and your music alone has likely helped millions of kids off of the ledge, both literally and figuratively. By you even joking about the fact that "pop singers don't eat," you're sending a totally bummer message to some really vulnerable kids.”

Gaga’s remarks have come across hypocritical to many who follow her, particularly since the singer has admitted to struggling with bulimia in the past. At a conference in February, the pop star opened up about her eating disorder to Maria Shriver after a high school student asked the singer how she was so confident.

Explaining she wasn’t as self-assured as people believed, Gaga told Shriver about her days grappling over body image in high school.

"I wanted to be a skinny little ballerina, but I was a voluptuous little Italian girl whose dad had meatballs on the table every night,” said the musician. “I used to come home and say, ‘Dad, why do you always give us this food? I need to be thin.’"

Gaga recently launched her Born This Way Foundation as a way to empower youth, and inspire both self-acceptance and respect for others. Accordingly, her latest statement doesn’t necessarily seem to measure up to the message.

Since posting the tweet, the hashtag has taken on a life of its own, sparking a debate between followers, some of whom find the singer’s statements offensive and others who note the ironic tone. Gaga herself has not offered clarification.

Delenafreakk tweeted, “#popsingersdonteat this is hardly the right message to send out. i like lady gaga, but this is influencing people in all the wrong ways.”

Yet Hannah Griffiths disagreed. “Gaga's #PopSingersDontEat tweet has SERIOUSLY been blown WAY out of proportion! Does nobody get sarcasm or are you all Canadian?!”

Adds Chris, “Did people really get angry that Gaga tweeted #popstarsdonteat? WOW. Obviously you don't understand humor...”

What do you think of Gaga's comment? Joke or irresponsible slip of the tongue? Share your thoughts on Facebook.

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