Legendary American actress and comedian, Betty White had expressed her excitement for PEOPLE magazine's new issue celebrating her 100th birthday in a tweet on December 28. America woke up on the last day of 2021 to the news of Betty White's death. While fans mourned America's favorite actress' death on social media, some blamed PEOPLE magazine the same. Betty White was set to celebrate her 100th birthday on January 17.
"My 100th birthday... I cannot believe it is coming up, and PEOPLE Magazine is celebrating with me!" Betty wrote in her last tweet on December 28. In the cover story, Betty White talked about her feelings on soon turning 100. "I'm so lucky to be in such good health and feel so good at this age," she told PEOPLE.
Betty White held the credit for having the longest-running career for any woman in TV, with a career spanning over eight decades starting from 1939. She is reported to have died of natural causes.
'Why jinx it?'
Netizens slammed PEOPLE magazine for producing a 'Betty White turns 100' cover before she actually turned 100. "Honestly I was mad that the mags ran with the 'Betty White turns 100!' headlines before she actually turned 100. Why jinx it???" one person tweeted.
"I said to myself why is PEOPLE magazine putting this issue out days before Betty White turns 100 and out that mojo out there," another person wrote. Some people, however, called it a coincidence.
On the other hand, a Chicago journalist received flak online after tweeting that Queen Elizabeth II should have died in place of Betty White. The freelance journalist, Nylah Burton, however, deleted her tweet but it had gone viral already.
"BETTY WHITE IS DEAD!?! Why couldn't it have been Queen Elizabeth?" Burton wrote in her tweet. "Why not Queen Elizabeth?? The universe took the wrong old white lady smdh," she wrote in a different tweet, responding to a user's criticism.
