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Should we cancel “cancel culture”? Two of the most controversial social media personalities sit next to the Estefans at the red table for an intense face-off on the cancel culture epidemic. Gloria, Lili, and Emily Estefan confront Perez Hilton for his notorious celebrity gossip blog.
During the episode, Hilton, whose real name is Mario Armando Lavandeira Jr., shares his regrets for his past behavior and targeted celebrity takedowns, including Britney Spears, Ariana Grande, Lady Gaga, and Lindsey Lohan; however, he justifies and sustains specific comments targeting other celebrities, including then 15-year-old Charli D’Amelio.
YouTube personality Gabbie Hanna also confronts Perez about what she calls his “hypocrisy” and reveals how being canceled costs her professionally and personally.
“The importance of having you here is for you to speak of you’ve contributed to this world, and now how are you going to contribute to changing it? What do you consider yourself when it comes to the industry?” Emily Estefan asked Perez.
“I consider myself an entertainer. I wouldn’t say I’m a journalist, although I do take what I do seriously,” Perez Hilton said.
Emily reminded Perez that even though he is doing it for entertainment, human beings are being hurt by his actions. “But for example, there were human beings on the other side of your stories,” she said. “And we have to call a spade a spade here. You said some pretty hurtful things.”
After agreeing with Emily, he later answered if he feels powerful tearing people down. “The word ‘power,’ to me it never resonated because that would imply that I can force people to do things, and I can force people to think a certain way,” Perez explained. “I could have influence, but I‘d like to view it more like opportunity. I had the opportunity to share, and people have the opportunity to receive.”
Perez said that he saw sharing personal information about celebrities as “shining the light on celebrities that get it right and those that get it wrong, those that are behaving badly.”
He later confirmed that he was addicted to being the center of attention. “I was a drug addict, and attention was my drug. I knew what I was doing was bad, and I kept doing it, and I kept being rewarded for it,” Perez acknowledged.
The Estefans also confronted Perez with his outing of celebrities in the past, including closeted gay stars like Clay Aiken, Lance Bass, and Neil Patrick Harris, way before they were ready to come out to the public. “I knew what I was doing was wrong. I would tell myself all these mantras, all these talking points. You know, being that drug addict, ‘Well, I‘m gonna do this because of that,” Hilton said. “...I would say things like, ‘Well, I’m just sharing with my friends online what my friends in private talk about.’”
Immediately after, Emily stopped Perez and told him that there’s a difference between friends and his readers. “Oh, my God, but...they’re not your friends. They‘re the audience of these people!” said Emily Estefan.
Watch the whole episode below, and don’t miss the finale episode surrounding the topic of double standard parenting.