Travis Scott’s Offer Of Free Therapy For Astroworld Victims Involves A Highly Controversial Online Therapy App
The partnership is being called "exploitative."
Ovidiu Hrubaru / Shutterstock Travis Scott has been facing more criticism online with his attempts to respond to the Astroworld tragedy that claimed 8 lives in Houston.
This time, it’s due to his announced partnership with BetterHelp, offering one month of free therapy those affected by the event.
As part of his response to the tragedy Scott annoucned that BetterHelp, an online therapy platform, would be offering those impacts one month of free therapy through their service.
Many people are not content with this response, taking to social media to voice their complaints, calling the move exploitative and simply not enough.
What is wrong with Travis Scott's BetterHelp partnership?
First, a month of free therapy, as many online point out, is a small drop in the bucket if someone is dealing with such a traumatic event and/or loss of a loved one. While it is a relatively common belief that some therapy is better than none, many disagree.
“Beginning to talk about— and therefore to think about —experiences that have long been repressed can increase symptoms and harmful behaviors before they get better or go away,” Dana Charatan, a licensed clinical psychiatrist, wrote for Vice in 2018.
In other words, a month free trial of online therapy could be just enough to drag on the trauma of those affected, without the follow through that many need.
After one month, BetterHelp typically charges between $60 to $90 per week, a high price to pay for many attendees who will likely need more care.
In addition to the complaints about the short trial, many also take issue with the nature of a partnership, or brand deal, coming out of this tragedy.
Will Travis Scott make money from his BetterHelp link?
When Travis Scott announced the partnership, he shared a distinct link — www.betterhelp.com/cactusjackfoundation — to direct those affected to their free month trial.
Many are criticizing the move to come out with a brand deal to respond to the situation — although it is unknown to the public at this time whether Scott will be receiving any money from the referrals to BetterHelp.
However, directing many traumatized people to a service necessary for them — while only offering a month of it for free — could easily be very profitable for BetterHelp.
Regardless of their intentions in collaborating, the partnership is still upsetting many online because of the potential profits that could be made off of this terrible tragedy.
BetterHelp has been widely criticized.
The backlash of some people on social media extends to the choice of the company itself.
BetterHelp has received backlash in the past for allegedly collecting consumer data and distributing it to third party sites, such as Facebook.
Social workers and therapists have complained online about the company's demands and low-pay. This means even those trying to give help are overworked and often required to be online 24 hours a day.
Overall, the general consensus is that those affected by, or even just aware of, the situation are disappointed and confused in the wake of this terrible tragedy and the lackluster response of many involved.
Amanda Hartmann is a writer and editorial intern for YourTango who writes on news and entertainment.