Reality star's hoax sparks outrage over false identity
The celebrity admitted after a few months that he lied about being transgender, considering it a "social experiment." It was not well-received.
19 October 2024 09:36
Thirty-seven-year-old Josh Seiter, previously known for participating in the reality show "Bachelorette" in 2015, was eliminated from the program in the first week. On October 15, 2024, he caused a stir when he admitted on the videocast "Prime Time with Alex Stein" that he had been pretending to be a transgender woman for several months as part of a self-proclaimed "social experiment."
The celebrity pretended to be a transgender woman
In May 2024, Seiter posted a statement on Instagram: "I no longer want to hide who I am, and I no longer want to deal with the mental turmoil that comes with suppressing such an important [part] of me. So, I ask for your thoughts and prayers—and patience—as I transition." Since then, he has been posting photos and videos in makeup and dresses, behaving in an exaggerated manner.
In Stein's videocast, Seiter declared: "For the last five months, I've been conducting a social experiment online to expose how gullible and how delusional the left is." Following his "coming out," many words of support came from people with liberal views, while there were numerous insults and unpleasant comments from the right. Seiter admitted he even received threats and death wishes.
Criticism of Josh Seiter's behavior
Seiter's "experiment" was poorly received. Among others, popular YouTuber Matt Bernstein commented on platform X: "he pretended to be trans online for six months and liberals left kind comments and conservatives left cruel comments. groundbreaking thanks josh." Many emphasized that mocking genuinely transgender people reflects poorly on Seiter himself.
A comment on the celebrity's Instagram read: "It's truly sad that you mock transitioning. It's harmful to a community that already faces many obstacles just trying to live authentically." Interestingly, the most popular comments criticized Seiter's behaviour even on the tabloid "The New York Post's" profile on platform X, which often presents a sensationalist conservative point of view. One of the top comments was: "'They accepted me' is a strange attempt at mockery."
