Love Island accused of hypocrisy by fans after trolling message

ITV show spoke out after current contestant received death threats

Love Island viewers have criticised the show for a sharing an anti-trolling message without acknowledging its own culpability in how contestants are presented.

Earlier this week, the family of “bombshell” Chloe Burrows revealed on Instagram that the 25-year-old’s account had been flooded with “disgusting” death threats after her choice to couple up with Aaron Francis led to Shannon Singh being dumped from the island.

In a statement shared on their official accounts on Thursday (1 July), Love Island branded the comments “wholly unacceptable”, urging “all of our viewers to think before posting”.

“Last night’s episode created strong reactions but some viewers’ posts were wholly unacceptable,” they wrote. “We take these matters extremely seriously and will support cast members and their families in reporting such posts.”

The post prompted a mixed response from fans, with many praising the show for taking a stand against trolling. However, a number of viewers pointed out that, by nature of it being a constructed reality show, production played a large part in the way contestants are perceived by the public.

In particular, many noted a challenge in which Brad McClelland was dared to kiss the islanders he was least attracted to, choosing partner Faye Winter.

“And we urge YOU to think before editing certain islanders in a particular way,” one commenter wrote, while another said: “Did they not force Brad to call out the most unattractive woman?”

Another tweet read: “I couldn’t agree more - Yet you ENCOURAGE people to kiss the person they find least attractive, humiliating them in front of everyone?”

“Please only respond kindly and positively to our zoo of human cruelty,” one Twitter user joked.

“YOU edit the show, YOU choose the games, YOU create the drama. Instead of being hypocrites, take responsibility for YOUR actions... Putting your cast in situations to make them look bad will cause backlash,” another commenter said. “If you want to be supportive, change how you make the show.”

Many also commented that they felt the dumping of Singh after just 48 hours directly contradicted Love Island’s “be kind” message, with one fan writing: “You dumped a contestant who waited through a whole pandemic and had to quarantine for two weeks to get on this show after 2 days?”

“You guys know exactly what you’re doing when you edit the episodes the way you want them to come across,” another viewer tweeted. “Dumping someone after just 2 days is not a cool move and could seriously affect Shannon after all the isolating/quarantining she’s had to do.”

You guys know exactly what you’re doing when you edit the episodes the way you want them to come across. Dumping someone after just 2 days is not a cool move and could seriously affect Shannon after all the isolating/quarantining she’s had to do.

— Liam (@RedDevilLiam) July 1, 2021

How about looking after contestants mental health? You let Shannon go through the arduous process of applying then having to undergo a 3 week quarantine with no contact from anyone only to dump her 2 DAYS in? Get your act together before coming for others.

— Daniel (@d_loughins) July 1, 2021

However, many fans have theorised that Singh’s exit may be short lived and that she could return to the villa for Casa Amor.

The Independent has contacted ITV for comment.

Love Island has introduced new welfare measures for the show’s contestants in 2021, with contestants offered “comprehensive” psychological support and being taught how to handle the “potential negativity” of social media. You can read more about the help in place for the islanders here.