TMZ updates reporting, retracts photos from Liam Payne’s death scene after backlash | Celebrity News | Showbiz and television

TMZ has pulled explicit images after an uproar broke out after they published photos of Liam Payne’s deceased body. The 31-year-old former One Direction member tragically died in Argentina after falling from the third floor of the hotel where he was staying with his girlfriend.

American gossip giant TMZ faced heavy criticism on Twitter for showing images of the Wolverhampton-born singer’s remains.

Her original post read: “TMZ has obtained a photo showing Liam’s body on a wooden deck at the hotel with tables and chairs nearby.”

They added more details, saying: “We don’t show the whole body, but you can clearly see his tattoo – a clock on his left forearm and a scorpion on his stomach.”

However, backlash from social media users caused TMZ to remove the disturbing photos of Liam.

They amended their article to say: “TMZ has seen a photo showing Liam’s body on the hotel patio with tables and chairs nearby. “You can clearly see his tattoos – a clock on his left forearm and a scorpion on his stomach – which helped us confirm early reports from witnesses,” reports Birmingham Live.

The decision follows heavy criticism from desperate fans. BBC presenter and star Rylan Clark expressed his outrage by tweeting: “TMZ is a bloody disgrace on you. Shame.” Canadian singer Alessia Cara also condemned the website, saying: “You are disgusting @TMZ.”

So far, TMZ and its founder Harvey Levin have yet to issue a response to the controversy.

TMZ previously sparked a storm of controversy with its coverage of the tragic helicopter crash in 2020 that killed basketball legend Kobe Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter Gianna and seven others.

The network was the first to break the shocking news, publishing the story less than two hours after the catastrophic event.

TMZ’s rapid reporting came under fire from law enforcement officials, who condemned the decision to release the details of the crash before the victims’ identities had been officially confirmed and their families notified by the coroner’s office.

Levin later claimed that TMZ received the green light from “Kobe’s people” before publishing the story.

The 31-year-old One Direction star died on Wednesday (10/16/24) after falling from the balcony of his third-floor room at the CasaSur Palmero hotel in Buenos Aires.

Alberto Crescenti, the head of the state emergency medical system, confirmed that the pop star fell into a courtyard of the CasaSur Palermo Hotel.