By Sunday, Martha Stewart had issued two public statements about a single Halloween costume, and the second one ended with an apology.
The multimillionaire businesswoman dressed as a homeless person for the holiday. Her outfit featured a flannel shirt, and she smudged dirt across her face to complete the look.
A photograph of the costume shows Stewart holding a sign. The sign reads: “I am hungry. HELP ME!!”
Some of her followers reacted negatively once the image circulated, and Page Six cataloged several of the responses in its coverage.
One user wrote to Stewart, “Your choice reflects an utter disconnect from the desperation and suffering of so many people, especially those who are unhoused and hungry,” according to the outlet.
Page Six also reported on commenters from Reddit. They described the costume as “offensive” and “out of touch,” the outlet noted.
Stewart answered the criticism first through an exclusive interview with Page Six. She told the outlet how the reaction had affected her.
“I am distressed that my Halloween costume yesterday, which was intended to bring more awareness to the very serious subject of homelessness, has offended people, which was never my intention,” she said.
In that interview, Stewart said the costume was meant to raise awareness of homelessness. She also said that offending anyone was never her intention.
Her remarks then widened to the topic of homelessness itself. Stewart pointed to her own record of supporting charities that work on the issue.
“Homelessness continues to remain one of America’s greatest challenges and ongoing crises, something that I care deeply about and I have spent a significant amount of time and effort supporting charities that combat this ongoing social epidemic,” Stewart added.
Page Six dated its report on that interview Nov. 1. The article’s web address says Stewart addressed the backlash but stopped short of apologizing.
Stewart did not stop there. On Sunday, she turned to Instagram and posted a second statement in her own name.
“It’s hard to admit when you’ve screwed up. My earlier statement didn’t go far enough. I know many people are suffering economically. Wearing a costume like I did was insensitive and not funny. I am very sorry.”
The Instagram post opened with an acknowledgment of a mistake and then referred back to her earlier remarks, which she said did not go far enough. It closed with a direct apology.
The post did not mention her charity work. Those references appeared only in her comments to Page Six.
The two statements reached the public through different channels. One came through a media outlet’s exclusive, and the other came through Stewart’s own social media account.
The tone and content differed as well. In the interview, Stewart described the costume as an effort to raise awareness. On Instagram, she called the same costume insensitive and not funny.
Her first statement opened with distress over the reaction. Her second ended with an apology.
Page Six published a separate report on the Instagram post, also dated Nov. 1.
The web address for that report describes it as covering an apology, and the article included comments from people critical of the costume.
The outlet attributed the strongest-worded comment to one user and the “offensive” and “out of touch” descriptions to Reddit commenters. Stewart did not name any critic in either of her statements.
Both statements referenced hardship. The first called homelessness one of America’s greatest challenges, and the second noted that many people are suffering economically.
Her remarks to Page Six described the costume as something she wore the day before. That timing places the interview shortly after Halloween.
The sequence unfolded over a matter of days. Stewart wore the costume, followers and Reddit commenters criticized it, she defended her intent in an interview, and she then apologized on Instagram.
