Scrolling through social media, it’s easy to feel like you know celebrities. From Instagram posts to advertisements on television, a built-up online persona latches onto fans. Yet, what passes as authenticity online is anything but. Social media celebrities present a polished performance with an intimate façade, shaping society and its viewers in ways most fans don’t consider.
Most problems start with the ‘curated’ nature of online content. Social media content is crafted to gain not only likes but also sponsorships and public approval. Celebrities hold a unique social responsibility, with influence that can shape anything from mental health to productivity standards, shifting the cultural norms of their followers.
The norm should be to have the courage to show imperfection, rather than covering up raw moments and disregarding their importance. Fans are more authentically drawn to this, no matter the topic.
31-year-old Taylor Frankie Paul, a Utah based influencer, built her career from, as she states on her Instagram, “be[ing] completely okay with being misunderstood.” As the founder of MomTok, a TikTok community of Mormon influencers from Utah, she has garnered over six million followers as of April 2026. Paul is famous for her “Taylor Frankie Paul-style” of sweatpants, Crocs and an oversized hoodie. Fans commend Paul for staying true to her comfort-based style rather than following trends.
A few months into her TikTok stardom, Paul was caught in a sexual scandal with her then husband Tate Paul, fellow MomTok member Miranda Hope and Hope’s then husband Chase McWhorter. Paul exposed the scandal in a candid live stream shortly following her divorce announcement.
Today, Paul is part of Hulu reality show “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives”, which showcases MomTok’s drama following the sexual scandal that gave the group their fame. With four seasons released, Paul is labeled as the star of the group by many of MomTok’s members. Paul gained her notoriety from her unabashed nature.
Following her divorce, Paul began dating fellow influencer Dakota Mortensen, having a child with him in March 2024.
In 2023, TMZ published a cop-cam video of the couple following a domestic violence complaint with Paul allegedly the aggressor. The footage made headlines. Critics claimed Paul is a dangerous role model for young women, but many supporters said that Paul showed what it was to be human by being candid about her experience dealing with tumultuous emotions of motherhood, a difficult relationship and online criticism. Paul escaped criticism relatively unscathed until March 2026.
On March 19, TMZ released a previously unreleased video showing Paul and Mortensen’s 2023 domestic altercation behind the scenes. In the video, filmed by Mortensen, Paul is shown throwing chairs and screaming while her child is present. In the subsequent fallout, ABC pulled upcoming season 22 “The Bachelorette,” which starred Paul.
Despite her actions, her fans continue to stand by her.
On March 29, Paul posted an Instagram video in which she is playing piano. Fans posted hundreds of supportive comments. User @justanotherinstagal commented “Energy shift is REAL… it’s only up from here babe ??”; user @jswinggle commented “??? Healing one day at a time;” and user @jadekevinfoster commented “you’ve got this babe ?? your the star, and stars never fall ??@taylorfrankiepaul ?? x.”
Paul represents a broader movement of fans enabling influencers, claiming they are just ‘human.’ But when a human becomes an influencer, should there be new expectations for them?
Not all celebrities contribute negative, misleading prompts on the internet. Some stars bring positive awareness to social issues on their platforms. For example, influencer Emma Chamberlain shares real-life struggles with mental health and personal insecurities on her platform. While detached from the curated standard of Instagram and YouTube, she still has gathered a large following, promoting shared vulnerability rather than achieving perfection. Her story simply inspires confidence and acceptance in society rather than the shallow, superficial concepts that many influencers gravitate towards.
Six years ago, Chamberlain debuted her podcast, “Anything Goes” as a conversational podcast applicable to anyone. Organized in a stream of consciousness style, Chamberlain often records from the comfort of her bed. In an episode, she will discuss whatever comes to mind, from friendship breakups to 80’s fashion to more existential, philosophical questions. For example, an episode released Oct. 30, 2025 was titled “should i strive or settle?” where Chamberlain talks about her own issues with the question and relates it back to her listeners.
Chamberlain also gets candid with her fans by sharing her personal struggles with the hopes she will spread awareness and inspire her listeners to better themselves. On July 6, 2023, Chamberlain released an episode that she admitted she had been avoiding titled “nicotine addiction.” Chamberlain talked about her journey away from nicotine in a personable way, citing specific moments in her life where she felt embarrassed about her use or moments when she repeatedly fell into the addiction.
Today, Chamberlain is famous for her anti-influencer persona, evident through her raw content. In Dec. 2019, Chamberlain founded Chamberlain Coffee, a sustainable coffee brand. From her YouTubing days, Chamberlain would often drink coffee while filming, so she created the brand to share her love for coffee with her fans.
Although Chamberlain is now viewed as closer to a celebrity than content creator, her fame originated from her editing style on YouTube. At 16, she revolutionized vlogging formats by editing her videos around her self-deprecating humor and fast-paced videos. Her older videos are filled with high energy, meme-driven cuts and effects that show her lively persona as a teenager. Today, however, Chamberlain’s style has evolved to reflect her personal evolution. Her editing style is now slower paced and has longer shots, with an artsy feel to all her work.
Despite Chamberlain’s acceptance of public struggles and vulnerability, many social media stars do not recreate the same environment of acceptance on their platforms. Although influencers such as Chamberlain do exist, they fill a much smaller percentage of content creators, and don’t completely erase the toxicity promoted by the thousands of other ‘perfect’ accounts or the thousands of influencers who promote dangerous ideals. As these pages are specifically created to build a façade of perfection, the positive influence brought in by truthful influencers is rarely understood or appreciated in the grand scheme of the internet. Consumers of social media should take all content, regardless of the influencer, with a grain of salt, acknowledging that what you see is part of a brand that has been curated for years.
