Weight levels can be a very sensitive topic, but influencer Liv Schmidt is not scared to venture in this area and express what she wants to say online. However, this brazen move has some unintended consequences, like being banned from TikTok.
The 22-year-old social media star, very well known online for her savvy "What I eat in a day" videos and "Skinny girl essential" suggestions, has developed a following that run into thousands. She successfully cultivated a community of working women obsessed with maintaining their weight.
From her well-decorated Amazon storefront stocked with dietary supplements, ankle weights and protein powders, to countless videos underscoring tips and tricks for avoiding weight gain, Schmidt’s brand has mainly been built around body image – though she’s not a certified nutritionist or health expert.
While the young professional has maintained a large following, many viewers online have found her content to be not only controversial but majorly triggering. On Reddit, anonymous users confessed to reporting her TikTok account multiple times for violating community guidelines with "disordered eating" posts. Others have accused her of "rage baiting," posting videos with the purpose of upsetting and frustrating netizens to boost her profile views.
"I want better for our youth," one Reddit user wrote, insinuating her content was "dangerous" for young TikTokers who may look up to her as a role model.
Following her ban from TikTok, Schmidt expressed her confusion over the sudden block in a recent interview with the Wall Street Journal. While a representative for TikTok had listed "community guideline violations" as the cause for Schmidt’s account removal, the influencer argued that she was trying to create a "genuine" space.
Speaking to the WSJ, Schmidt admitted that she’s aware of how easy it is to fall victim to societal pressures surrounding body image and appearance. For her, attending the University of Arizona as a college student amplified her own insecurities.
"If you look around and every single person around you is blonde and skinny, you're gonna definitely feel more peer pressure to fit into that stereotype," she told the outlet. Now, Schmidt considers her "personal aesthetic" as "skinny," whether she was influenced by her college environment or not.
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