America's Next Top Model Judges Bully Model on Anti Bullying Photoshoot 

As a Mental Health Therapist and someone that loves photography, I just have to say that was terrible. The mixed message of "bullying" and then being bullied in the photoshoot is appalling. I get the "empowerment" vibe they were going for but in therapy, we call this "flooding" and that can be very dangerous to expose someone to those traumas without the therapy component. Then for the girl that was sent home.......I just can't even say how damaging that was to be said to her in front of everyone....

Judges: we hope you don't lose work for being too skinny Also judges: eliminate her for being too skinny 🤡

You just misunderstood: the photoshoot was about TEEN bullying. What the judges did was ADULT bullying. Totally different.

Everyone's talking about the girl who's being critiqued on her body, but I'm really upset about the handling of the girl who had "queer" written on her. By now of course a ton of LGBTQ people, including me, have found "queer" to be an empowering word but at the time..... Writing a slur all over her that people had traumatized her with??? such a bad move

Everything about this show is irresponsible. We just didn’t realize it back then because it was so normalized.

Jay put “Band geek” on his t-shirt like Emma put Ginger on her born this way shirt on Glee instead of OCD- like that’s not what you were teased for and I KNOW for a fact, you’re telling me Jay- was an adopted mixed-race little gay boy from South Africa… and being a BAND GEEK in high school is what you got bullied about?? I call cap sir

She said “I’m trying to get lean” so she very obviously has/had an eating disorder with body dysmorphia. This should have been enough for a serious production to take her out of the show PRIVATELY while giving her the psychological support she desperately needed. WTF is this shameful display?

As a counselor who has treated eating disorders, the way they treated that contestant was reckless. This contestant should have been screened out before ever appearing on this show. She shouldn't have her eating issues exploited for reality television. This is a private issue and should have been dealt with accordingly. Very disturbing. Very sad.

The judges talking about Esther’s bra size made me so uncomfortable, like don’t comment on people’s bodies. Also, how they treated Anamarie was VILE.

That conversation they had with one of the models and her body was honestly awful. They don't know if she is unhealthy unless a doctor has said that. Looks don't correspond to good health usually, and to hold her own body against her without any information about her health and to do so publicly (and even potentially triggering a relapse if she had an ED) was so irresponsible. If they really cared, they would have had her go to a doctor and/or set her aside to talk to her without the cameras, as you mentioned. That was horrible

They really said “I don’t like the photograph. I don’t like the muscle” on the girl who was called manly looking by her bullies

i hate when ppl say “words could never hurt me” idk about yall, but words can fricken hurt a lot sometimes

Anamaria right now, she is fine, she is recovered and look amazing!!!

The concept of this photoshoot is SO irresponsible. It’s like they were hoping some of the girls would get triggered so Tyra could “calm them down” and get good content that ONLY flattered Tyra. GOD I CANNOT stand this woman

"But words won't hurt me" they say during the challenge meant to raise awareness about teen bullying and how it contributes to teen suicide rates. That Sticks and Stones mentality is absolute garbage and is why a lot of people aren't held accountable for the genuine damage their words can cause, either because people don't take the victims seriously or because the victims themselves feel like their pain isn't valid.

“If you’re not healthy, you lose your beauty.” Me, with poor health, disabled: oh.

This is irrelevant but I hate how today Jay loves pin all the blame on Tyra when he was apart of the toxic environment just as much as she was. He’s a twisted snake and enjoyed belittling, humiliating, and shaming the girls for the sake of drama as seen in this clip. The fact that he’s trying to manipulate people into emphasizing with him like he’s this innocent angel is disgusting. Hold him accountable as well.

“Bullying is awful!” Also: “You are too skinny, you look unhealthy!” (Why did they even cast her if it was an issue?)

I'm in the last phase of this cancer that I am battling. I no longer have hair and I am struggling for my life. Your videos bring joy to my life Jessica. Hearing that woman say the comment about health and beauty infuriated me. My Wife tells me every day how beautiful I am inside and out. I really love your videos! Thank you!

"This word did not define who I became as an adult." Ah yes, from bullied to bully 😌

"Eat some avocado and toast" is the model equivalent to "Go eat a cheeseburger" As someone that struggles with keeping weight on, that part was so triggering.

I really don’t like how Tyra said that Anamaria's body/weight made her uncomfortable. That shouldn’t be the focus if you’re concerned for someone and approaching the topic of their weight/health. Also this should have been done in private

Judges: We want to empower you, to shed the words of people that hurt you. Also Judges: There is something wrong with your body. Goodbye.

Here’s an even better idea…have all the contestants take turns writing their favorite thing about you on your body. That way, even if you get eliminated, you’ll have a photo of yourself that represents all the things the other girls love about you🥰

Sooo the conversation they had was completely irresponsible, as someone who recovered from an ED, publicly shaming someone is not how you handle that conversation. Apparently (in Jay’s chat, and some other models) they casted this lovely young woman about a month before the first episode (to give girls time to get paperwork etc) and this lovely woman came back for shooting 10-15 lbs lighter, and on her very slim body it was a bit alarming. I think because there were other girls who had ED’s on the show that production knew about, and did nothing about (like in season 3) they got a lot of backlash so they went way to hard on this poor girl. I really don’t know the circumstances, just what a lot of people who have allegedly said, and this is honestly just speculation, I don’t think that this came from a malicious place, but all of that criticism was mishandled

The critique that "I don't see model, I see athlete but gorgeous" is so hilarious in light of recent comments. After Victoria's Secret's decision to use regular women and athletes, Tyra was all about how great it was and took credit for opening the door for that decision to be made but right there you can see how she really feels about athletes being models

I was bullied in school. I was told to end my life in a variety of ways, mocked, harassed, had things thrown at me, asked out as a joke, was used as a worst case scenario for "would you rather" situations. Because I was fat, poor, and lgbt. Seeing these kind of anti-bullying campaigns never made me feel seen as a young person, they just made me feel mocked by the adults in my life.

As problematic as this episode was, Kayla’s story made me tear up as someone who was also teased for my queerness. The power word being “free” was amazing

The way the model talked about what she sees in the mirror, and needing to “get lean” is definitely concerning and is a sign of body dysmorphia and could be related to an eating disorder. But having those conversations on camera, being led by reality show judges, is beyond irresponsible.

As someone who has struggled with disordered eating in the past, I think that outing her on national television was completely inappropriate. If they actually wanted to address the issue they should have gotten a medical professional to address the issue off camera in a comfortable setting.

I have struggled with anorexia. It started in the 8th grade, when I was 13. I'm 18 now and I still have times when I have to truly force myself to eat something. This was so wrong in so many ways. This is not the way to handle it. Not even close.

The AUDACITY of these judges They need to take several seats. They say, positivity and strength but they’re the biggest bullies ever and STILL bullied them in this shoot..

I mean…I don’t think she got that skinny all of a sudden. Why did they pick her in the first place if her body was an issue to them? They used her only to make it look like they care for certain topics, and they even did it wrong

I looked Anamaria up after this and I found: "In the promotional photos, Anamaria's legs were completely photoshopped out, and replaced with Jane's legs. This is most likely due to her legs being too thin to market." That is so horrible how they treated her. She seems to be doing okay now though and apparently got into photography after leaving the show!

'why are you crying' **she says while encouraging the girls to relive the horrible bullying that they've experienced**

"why are you crying?" I don't know Tyra, maybe it's the fact that she's being forced to relive her trauma on TV.

I feel like this is one of the worst bullying episodes because it was so much more subtle than normal. They got the models to open up then used their words against them. They spouted caring words during judging when they're usually so harsh that there's no way their "niceness" could be believed. And then the heavy bullying Tara did at the end was horrifying.

speaking as a person recovering from anorexia nervosa: this just promotes the idea that eating disorders are body types and not the serious, deadly illness that they are. you can die from an eating disorder at ANY WEIGHT. at the end of the day her health and weight are for her and her doctor to worry about. this was just gross to watch.

The conversation they had with Anamaria is so stressful. Like yes I love them taking a stance and emphasizing the importance of health in the modeling industry. But also you are so right that it was beyond inappropriate for them to have that conversation in front of the camera targeting just her. But also let’s talk about the hypocrisy inherent in focusing on her weight whole not mentioning Ann’s?

The judges: you have to look healthy to be beautiful Also the judges: I don't see a model, I see an athlete and I don't like the way your arm muscles look (even though muscular was her bully word)

As someone who struggles with body image, that would send me into a spiral of either overeating or not eating at all. So not okay to bring up in that setting. Hope all the women are doing well and are happy.

They bullied girls mercilessly for being too big, and they're bullying her body for being too thin. Telling her those things on national television is just going to make her dig her heels in. Here's the thing, heroin chic was a thing, and I doubt models who are "too thin" will miss out on much work

“This is the nicest panel I’ve ever seen” Well… that went down hill like lava from an erupting volcano

My bullying word would’ve been “retard” (although I don’t like using that word because of the historically degrading context from which it stems) I got that a lot because I was in special Ed growing up (I have autism). My empowerment word would have been unique or original.

The irony is that in the recap episode of this season, the models are complaining that Anamaria is irresponsible for EATING TOO MUCH OUT OF THE FRIDGE AND NOT CLOSING THE LIDS BACK.

Booking the models and then telling them “I don’t like your body type” is such a horrible thing to do

Totally agree about having a word that's hurt you written all over your body. I get what they were going for, but it felt less like a "reclaim and be proud!" thing and more of a way to get the girls to expose their pain for the drama of television. I don't want to compare one kind of bullying as "worse," and of course I don't know the situations, but the examples were things like "band geek" which is vastly different from "queer." I'm queer and love the word because of its history and inclusivity, but I wasn't called it as a slur because I didn't come out until college. Watching this I was thinking of all the words I could've chosen for myself in this shoot (not a model but not the point), and the one that hurt me the most would probably be "retard." I have ADHD and was supposed to get tested for autism, but my parents never told me that last part. They just said I got diagnosed with ADHD but "it's not real, it's just an excuse to be lazy" and when I asked what it was they said "it means you're a retard. You're too smart to be retarded." That's something I heard a lot from my parents and peers. "You're so smart but you act like a retard." Cause I flap my hands when happy, or get really excited and rambly about my interests, or struggled with social cues. I was thrown in lockers, pushed down stairs, told I belonged on "the short bus." All this to say, if I were in this shoot, I would NOT be comfortable having a neurotypical makeup artist write "retard" all over my skin. And if queer had been used against me, I would NOT feel comfortable having a cishet person write it on my body. Actually, even having not been called it as a slur, I still don't think I'd be okay with that (I have still had to deal with queerphobia). I'd do it, but it'd take a lot not to break down. And having that trauma be judged? And knowing I could be eliminated having "retard" all over my body? The whole things feels disgusting and performative. Like it was never about anti-bullying. It's possible every one of these girls was bullied, but it's also possible not all of them were, yet they had to pick words used against them and held them on the same level. Again, I don't wanna diminish the harm of these words, but some of these are insecurities and some are trauma, and they're being treated as the same for the sake of an anti-bullying campaign. I don't know if I'm making sense. It just feels icky to go "you've all been bullied for something, write it on your skin" when some of them may not have been bullied and may have been bullies themselves. This isn't "anti-bullying" it's pro-victim empowerment after bullying, doing nothing to prevent or address bullying itself. Like "Oh I was called this but if I just think about it differently it's actually empowering." That CAN be a good lesson, but here it just felt cheap and inauthentic.

I have been on both sides of the “weight spectrum” and I can confidently say that being called “too skinny” is the same damn thing as being called “too fat”!!! I was at 190lbs after I had my first child and I’m only 5’2. I then lost down to 109lbs and wearing a 00 in jeans!!! It’s just as hurtful. Being told that makes you feel defeated, like you’re not enough no matter what you do. Ppl gotta learn to LOVE!!! Someone is always going to have SOMETHING bad/negative to say, but don’t let that person be you. Don’t be the person that says something that will run through the mind of the one that’s hurt all damn night long… BE KIND!!! BE BETTER!!! Love and let love!!! It’s truly not that hard!!!

So they spend 24+ seasons reinforcing impossible beauty standards by judging and criticizing beautiful women, then throw in a photoshoot about how young people are tormented for not meeting those standards. Oh and then bully them in the middle of that photoshoot. 🙃

Telling somebody with a restrictive eating disorder that they look ill and too thin is probably the worst thing you can do to them. Tyra, as somebody who works an an industry KNOWN for enforcing restrictive diets and leading to horrible eating habits, should know better than that.

I’m a dietitian and we deal with people with ED’s it certainly looks/sounds like this girl has one. But you never know ultimately from just an episode on tv. They shouldn’t have done it in front of everyone. If she has an ED she doesn’t want people to know that. Maybe she doesn’t even know it herself and really thinks she is beautiful that skinny. Then it’s just a great insult she just got. Some people with an ED are striving to the thinnest possible so if people are telling them things like this they are thinking i’m doing great because they all think i’m thin. It may make the ED worse. It’s a difficult thing to deal with but they should never spoken about her body like that. They should have spoken with her in private (a psychologist preferred) and should have focussed more on the psychology with it so she sees why it is not healthy to starve yourself and sees why she is behaving that way. They should Not have focussed on how she looks.

So i sometimes have felt like Jessica has hid behind the "what do you guys think" and in this video I think she handled it very well. She really laid down the body shaming not being ok, that if there's valid concern for someone's health to not address it in front of cameras, how inappropriate it is, calling out hypocrisy....thank you jessica.

The thing that bugs me is that if they felt like she was too skinny why didn’t they try and help her? Instead of publicly shaming her maybe they should get her some therapy or something? And the fact that she was actually suffering from an eating disorder makes it so much worse.

I like the idea of turning a bullying word into a power word. It’s just that, with ANTM, it’s not working…

I got really angry with them about the girl who didn't want queer written on her. That abviously was a trigger for her. And I know they don't care either way which is so inhuman. For anyone who has not had any trauma in their life please do not judge someone that will have an episode after seeing, hearing or even touching something that will trigger the episode. I have seen comments that said "triggers are for weak people". We are some of the strongest people you will ever meet.

Bruh saying things like “ur to skinny” or “u look unhealthy” or something along the lines of that is still a form of body shaming!

I was bullied from K-8th grade by the same group of girls. It was horrible. It got to a point where I just had to ask if they were obsessed with me. Like who bullies someone for that long??

I agree that the girl did look unhealthy but yeah it didn’t need to be brought to light in a “shaming” type way and in front of all the girls. Probably would have been more appropriate as a one on one conversation off camera between her and a producer or health care professional. And ultimately in the end she said she likes her body so... It’s her prerogative to look however she wants. Edit to add that in the end she is used by the judges as a tool to “send a message” as opposed to being treated like a human being.

"I'm not a G and I look bigger than you" There she goes again, Tyra making a situation about herself. Also, why destroying that poor girl in front of everybody and on national tv? she literally bullied her over her body type but why did you pick her in the first place if you think her body sends a wrong message? Words can't describe how disgusted I feel by how Tyra and her crew treated all these girls for years.

I just randomly found your channel. I could care less about photography but here I am! New subscriber! I love your commentary and Im really enjoying your content!

when i saw the girl who had the word "athletic" on her bicep i was like oh wow thats a great placement for that word cause its like saying F you look at the strength i have...then that judge literally says "i don't like the muscle" 😤

Some of the girls were super nervous because I believe this was the first photoshoot of this season

"Beauty is health" is one of the most over simplified and ableist things I've heard in ages.

The joke is that they publicly confront and chastised a girl for being too thin, but whenever they’ve done casting episodes, particularly in places like Paris and Milan with the biggest fashion houses, it’s the skinniest girls who get jobs/ would get booked outside of the show. They’re lying about her body not working for designers and also publicly ‘exposing’ someone who is suffering from mental health issues.

Yeah..as someone with body-dysmorphia and has sufferd with ed since the age of 11...you can't just say to someone "look at your body..do you see how unwell you look?",, NO TYRA! no she doesnt!! Bc she may have an issue and may look in the mirror and see a full figured 'fat' girl...

The fact that if the judges really cared they could have come up with their "constructive criticism" privately.

Aaww jessica I love how u understand everyone, and I love the funny little voice u do lol ur videos always make my day

If im gonna be honest, my model career was more like the top model shoots then ur reactions, I´m glad to hear things are changing, & I have learned to say no ore walk away if lines are crossed, losing jobs in the prossess, but they did imitate reality more then people today think, at least back in the day. I actually started watching ur videos a while back, & ur reactions shooked me more then the show, Im glad things have & are changing, its defiantly not okay, but it was reality. im sad to say. But again, I would not accept it today though, probably why im doing YT & focusing on my acting career now, specially since MeToo things are so much better, but you still see things.

There is something about how they basically forced the models to talk about their trauma so openly that doesn't sit right with me. I would at least wat some sort of acknowledgement that they talked about it willingly. Also the girl with "queer" written all over her body. I have a similar story and i never want to see the word meant to dismiss and dehumanize me written on myself. Yeah, there's a power in reclaiming words, but not everyone wants to and that needs to be respected. (also i'd argue being put in a situation like this isn't really giving the choice to reclaim words like that)

"Today we're focusing on teen bullying" So... like every week?

Lol I love your commentary on this so much! All so true!

I'm glad you brought this to people's attention and I'm happy I read she was doing better....especially since she had a ED

Here they're like "oh you're too thin" but then in other seasons they also call out the girls for gaining weight. For example Anchal and London (don't remember which season exactly). And they looked amazing!!

They clearly wanted to make an example of her. I think they'd gotten backlash in the past about super skinny models and when they had "plus-sized" models, they were not true plus-sized. So they deliberately did this as an attempt to show they care. But it was awful and def should not have been done the way it was.

I genuinely love and respect you! 💗🦋✨

Jessica, you are delightful. I really enjoy your videos because of your insights and because your personality shines through.. Subbed.

Not only did they talk about it during panel, they decided to also air this on TV for the whole world to see.

She could have a ed dude them saying stuff like that is harsh. I had an eating disorder and people would say stuff like that and I'd cry and it only made it worse for me. What's wrong with people? I'm sorry for all those people who are going through something right now you are not alone. You are worthy, and you are amazing don't forget it. Your body size does not determine your worth.

love the casual "smullah" hahah i knew i liked your vibe for a reason!

That was 100% body shaming! I’ve been heavy most of my life, and I was shamed by my family so much I wanted to end my life. Just because she’s thin doesn’t make it any less horrible. It’s never ok to make comments like that about someone’s body, especially publicly. I’m sickened by what I saw.

Skinny girl here! I can see their concerns about that girl’s health, but it was absolutely uncalled for the way they handled that situation. That was not something that should have been addressed in front of cameras or even in front of the other models. And some girls are JUST SKINNY. Maybe she is genetically prone to be much skinnier than the average girl. Also the comment Tyra made about the model’s message to young girls was uncalled for. If I was a model, one of my biggest things would be to encourage and empower ALL body types. We get bullied for our size, just like big girls do. I was very disappointed and honestly disgusted with the way that was handled, but props to that model for staying strong though the criticism.

Love the pause and then the laugh right after you told us what the guy said

i always hated my nose but seeing it on your face made me love it 😳 your bone structure is stunning!!

Her bully word: Manly The judge: I don’t like the muscle.. 🤡 What a clown

ANTM: this shoot is about combatting teen bullying! Oh teen bullying is just the worst!!! Also ANTM: ew look at this teen shes so skinny how disgusting. Get her out of here!

The President of the CFDA or whatever the letter were, mentioned when you lose your health, that you lose your beauty. I currently have Heart Failure, Severe hypertension in my lungs, 2 broken feet and a torn meniscus. Oh and Fibromyalgia. I’m still beautiful. Period.

11:32 Ana Marias face when Jay said "This is your last photoshoot" is a mood

The part about her being "too skinny" is such horseshit. It's not right, but that's the EXACT look many designers are looking for. If they're genuinely concerned about her health, that's a conversation they need to have off-camera. Shitting on her publicly can just make an ED worse.

Crazy how over 10 years ago, Queer was a harsh word and now it's widely used in the LGBTQIA community

I love your insight, it makes me see some stuff I ignored. This elimination was set up definitely, they knew her body type in casting week.

I watched americas next top model religiously growing up. My fav show. I just loved the different faces and always changing and cool photo shoot challenge like photo shoot with a snake or wearing a mermaid tail.

Those words are literally the triggers for the victims-

I remember this episode I felt like it was wrong to comment on Anamaria’s body but I remember they did show she was losing like a lot of weight in like not a good way. Not sure if it’s real or not of course since this is “reality tv” but either way some comments they make on this show is not right. Plus if they wanted to talk to her if they were concerned they could of done that in private. I did like the concept but I do feel like it could be triggering to some and I felt so sorry towards Kayla and others who may be triggered by this.

Please. i can't stop binge watching all your videos. Make it stop, lol.

i watched ANTM when i was a teenager, and now i'm having a tottally new perspective on this show thanks to you... Thank you! AHAHAHAHA

Tyra was responsible in making Anamaria a finalist (this episode literally aired after an episode of Tyra picking the finalists) so why bring her on at all if you're just going to humiliate her? absolutely shameless.

As someone who has struggled with eating and body image issues in the past, I am disgusted with their actions. They never should have outed her on national television. If they had actually wanted to help they should have gotten a trained medical professional to speak with her if she wanted to off camera and in a comfortable setting.

ANTM seems to really thrive on using past trauma to get views. You can dig into your emotions without bringing up triggers, ptsd, cptsd, ANY TRAUMA. Especially trauma written on your body? The amount that can mess with your head is insane. I used to write what I was called on me as a kid bc I sincerely believed them, and that led to self harm. I used to love this show growing up, I wanted to go on it but thank God my mom gently convinced me to not. I can't believe I used to look up to Tyra as a role model. Thank you for your bluntness in your videos and your reassurance. I really hope I can meet and give you a big hug one day Jessica.

You go Mr. Jay! Went from being bullied as "Band Geek", to bullying others as "Creative Genius"! What an inspiration to us all!

I feel like this should’ve been with only the power words written on them. Embrace who you are today, not dwell on the past