Travis Kelce’s Team Failed to Address Shane Gillis ‘SNL’ Controversy With Their Statement, Said Expert
Travis Kelce recently liked a video of Shane Gillis’ Saturday Night Live monologue, sparking instant backlash on social media. Gillis’ monologue was controversial due to his remarks about women. While many celebrities have condemned Gillis’ jokes, Kelce’s like has come across as a cosign to many. A PR expert believes that Kelce’s team hasn’t gone about dealing with this drama in the right way.
Travis Kelce liked a video of Shane Gillis’ controversial ‘SNL’ monologue
In his SNL monologue, Gillis joked about the clothing women wear to the gym.
“I haven’t been to the gym in so long, I didn’t realize women just dressed like whores now,” he said.
He added that “the wrinkles go around the cheeks and all combine at the butthole.”
“And don’t look, you’re not allowed to look,” he said. “For real, don’t look because they are filming. I’m in the background of about 10 TikToks right now.”
Kelce liked a video of the monologue on Instagram.
A PR expert weighed in on Travis Kelce’s response to the ‘SNL’ controversy
In remarks to Page Six, a representative for Kelce explained his like. They said that “he’s always been a massive fan of the show and he was supporting a friend.”
Celebrity and entertainment PR expert Lynn Carratt with Casino.org believes that this was the wrong way to go about it. She understands that the intent was to avoid further controversy.
“From a PR perspective, the explanation given by Travis’s team [to Page Six] was clearly designed to calm things down without turning it into a bigger story,” she explained. “By saying Travis was simply supporting a friend and has always loved SNL, his team has offered a perfectly plausible explanation without directly defending the controversial jokes.”
Unfortunately, though, Carratt noted that the response misunderstands why people felt upset with Kelce.
“It’s a fairly sensible approach, but it doesn’t entirely solve the problem because it sidesteps why people were offended in the first place.”
She does not believe he should say anything more
Carratt doesn’t believe the excuse by Kelce’s team is exactly sufficient. Still, she thinks it would be a mistake to apologize further.
“The last thing his team should do is turn this into a huge public apology over an Instagram like, because that risks giving the story more oxygen,” she said. “But equally, dismissing the criticism entirely could make Travis appear out of touch with the women who have embraced him over the past few years. My advice would be to let the explanation stand, avoid getting drawn into an online argument and be a little more mindful about what he’s publicly endorsing.”
She also believes that Taylor Swift should stay out of it. Many of her fans have criticized Kelce for liking the post. Carratt doesn’t believe the like will do any lasting damage to Kelce’s career. She thinks he needs to be more careful in the future, though.
“Ultimately, this is unlikely to damage either of their careers in any meaningful way, but it’s a reminder that when your relationship has become such a huge part of popular culture, there’s very little room for careless social media activity,” she said. “Travis might have liked the video because he was supporting his mate, but unfortunately, when millions of people are watching your every move, intention and perception can be two very different things.”
