Fox News Flash top entertainment headlines for February 28
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Rachel Lindsay has allegedly disabled her Instagram account due to online harassment she’s received after her interview with longtime "Bachelor" host Chris Harrison.
This claim comes from Lindsay’s "Higher Learning" podcast co-host Van Lathan, who shared an Instagram video about the topic on Friday.
"My co-host on ‘Higher Learning,’ Rachel Lindsay, disabled her Instagram earlier today," Lathan, 40, said. "She did it because that's how much hate she's getting from Bachelor fans who are spamming her with all kinds of rude and hateful things to say."
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Lathan went on to urge "Bachelor" and "Bachelorette" fans who are sending hateful messages to get a life.
Rachel Lindsay starred as the lead in "The Bachelorette," reality dating show on ABC. Her season appeared on the network in 2017. (ABC/Craig Sjodin)
Earlier this month, Lindsay – the former "Bachelorette" star of season 13 who served as the show’s first Black female lead – interviewed Harrison for Extra. The pair discussed the current season of "The Bachelor," which features Matt James, the first Black male lead for the series.
Eventually Lindsay, 35, and Harrison, 49, had a disagreement on the public perception of James’ potential love interest Rachael Kirkconnell, who had been outed for racially-insensitive activities she had done in the past.
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Photos shared on Reddit show Kirkconnell, 24, attending an "Old South" sorority party while wearing an antebellum-style dress in 2018 as well as a Native American costume she wore at a party she attended in 2020. A TikTok user shared a video in January with a caption that claimed Kirkconnell "bullied" her for liking "Black guys" in high school.
Harrison did not outright disavow or offer criticism of Kirkconnell’s past actions, which were only alleged at the time since she had not issued a statement at the time of the interview.
"We all need to have a little grace, a little understanding, a little compassion," Harrison told Lindsay when she broached the topic to him.
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Harrison immediately got blasted for seemingly defending Kirkconnell and perpetuating racism, according to critics.
He later issued two apologies via Instagram, and announced that he is temporarily "stepping aside for a period of time."
Former NFL player Emmanuel Acho, 30, will be hosting "The Bachelor: After the Final Rose" in place of Harrison, according to a tweet the show put out on Saturday.
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Meanwhile, Lindsay announced she will be leaving the franchise shortly after the controversial interview.
"I can’t take it anymore," Lindsay told Lathan in their Feb. 12 podcast episode. "I’m contractually bound in some ways. But when it’s up, I am too. I can’t do it anymore."
In an unexpected twist, it appears that Kirkconnell is one of the few "Bachelor" stars to renounce the hate Lindsay has received from fans.
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"Rachel Lindsay and other BIPOC have called for myself and others to be held accountable. This is needed, and she does not deserve the hate she is receiving," Kirkconnell wrote in a statement shared to Instagram on Saturday. "Recognize that she along with every person you send hateful messages to, are human."
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