Bobby Norris has revealed he recently decided to take a brief break from social media after facing homophobic abuse online.
The TOWIE star, 33, who is currently in a relationship with boyfriend Matt, admitted he signed off the platform after receiving both death and acid attack threats for being gay.
Speaking on FUBAR Radio on Thursday, the media personality also touched on the impact of the Be Kind campaign as he claimed people have ‘gone back to trolling’ just months after Love Island host Caroline Flack’s death.
Hard times: Bobby Norris has revealed he recently decided to take a brief break from social media after facing homophobic abuse online
Last week, the reality star hosted his Instagram Live series Get Gobby With Bobby with Love Island 2019 winner Amber Gill, where he was sadly met with users criticising his appearance and sexuality.
In an interview with hosts Joanna Chimonides and Stephen Leng on Access All Areas, Gemma Collins BFF explained: ‘It’s so disappointing that something that’s been set up to be a positive place gets tarnished with trolls that clearly get something out of it.
‘There is that double edged kind of side to it where you don’t really want to address it and give them the platform. But also… it’s almost weird not to.’
‘It’s absolutely awful and vile. To the point where from the Saturday night to kind of like Monday morning I thought, ‘I’m gonna take a break from social media, this is so full on”.
‘It’s awful’: The TOWIE star, 33, who is currently dating boyfriend Matt (pictured), admitted he signed off the platform after receiving both death and acid attack threats
While Bobby says he’s got ‘a thick skin’, he shared his worries about others who aren’t as mentally strong.
He said: ‘I’m so aware there’s many people out there that can’t, who are affected by it so badly that it affects their mental health and they self-harm and it’s awful that some people even take their own lives over it.’
In February, TV veteran Caroline’s suicide sparked the Be Kind campaign as part of the fight against online bullying and abuse.
Two months on, the Essex star insisted people have forgotten about the powerful message.
He said: ‘It was only a few months ago that everyone was jumping on social media saying ‘Be Kind’ and then fast forward eight or twelve weeks and people have just completely gone back to not realising that trolling, it’s not banter, it’s not funny.
‘It really is online abuse. To kind of try and dismiss it and think it’s a laugh, it’s really not.’
Last year, the created the End The Trend To Troll campaign, which led to talks in Downing Street, the House of Commons and Parliament.
Admitting he received backlash for his efforts, the presenter shared: ‘It ironically made so many trolls come for me because I think they thought, “oh hold on a minute, if he does something about this, you’re gonna ruin our fun”.
‘People have gone back to trolling’: In a new interview, the media personality touched on the impact of the Be Kind campaign after Love Island host Caroline Flack’s death (pictured in 2018)
‘So I kind of put myself on the line and got trolled more than I was before because I was trying to end it, which I guess is kind of ironic!
‘I got such bad death threats, I was told there was people outside my house that were gonna stab me with eleven inch machetes and throw acid in my face. And this is all because of my sexuality. I mean it’s 2020 guys, come on.
‘The thing is, you can troll me ’til I’m old and grey, like 94-years-old. I’m a gay man. Your trolling isn’t gonna make me go to bed tonight and wake up straight in the morning!’
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‘It affects their mental health’: While Bobby says he’s got ‘a thick skin’, he shared his worries about others who aren’t as mentally strong