Ellen DeGeneres. (Photo by Michael Tran/FilmMagic) FilmMagic

Twitter, in many ways, is a deeply unpleasant, unhealthy place. But occasionally, it exposes the hubris of the wealthy and powerful in a way that traditional media never could.

Fawning celebrity profiles in magazines were unaccompanied by public commenters picking apart the narrative, but those golden years of unquestioned moral authority are long dead. The fact that celebrities can no longer hide behind the pages of a publication with their best interests in mind, is a wonderful new development.

Social media might be infested with mean-spirited and abusive trolls, but it’s also full of smart, insightful people who are free to point out the most unsavory aspects of our beloved celebrities. Thus, when a photo of Ellen DeGeneres, who has built her career on a warm public persona, and an outspoken attitude against injustice, laughing along with former President George W. Bush started making the rounds, the image attracted a great deal of criticism.

The sight of Ellen, an LGBT icon, befriending a president who refused to acknowledge and properly classify LGBT hate crimes, seemed very much at odds with Ellen’s publicly-stated values. The countless innocents slaughtered during the Iraq War, along with fallen U.S. soldiers, were apparently no match for the power of Ellen and George’s friendship, forged in the private seats of a Dallas Cowboys game.

Ellen made a video statement in response, peppered with corny one-liners, dismissing the criticism as a failure of empathy, telling her critics to be kind to those we disagree with, as though it were a mere difference of opinion that was the problem. It was a bizarre, out-of-touch reaction that spoke volumes about the insulated lives of Hollywood’s inhabitants.

The overwhelmingly positive reaction to Ellen’s statement from the rich and famous only emphasised the point; these people are comfortably shielded from harmful policies, and don’t seem to view the atrocities of war as something worth getting worked up about.

As the video of Ellen’s non-apology spread through Twitter, the video was said to be taken down by a copyright strike. Inevitably, the video was uploaded again, now with a notable edit, the static background replaced with horrifying images of the Iraq War.

The video highlighted the hollow hypocrisy of Ellen’s words, and amplified the criticism. Even other celebrities started to join in the backlash, the sickening imagery of the altered apology video impossible to argue against.

Amusingly, The Good Place star Jameela Jamil claimed to be completely ignorant of Bush’s legacy, and after educating herself, joined the condemnation.

Jamil’s somewhat sheltered response sparked a wave of derision from her fans, astonished that the politically active celebrity had no prior knowledge of a major global event.

As one of Jamil’s fans praised the star for her honesty, using the phrase “blind spot” to describe her knowledge gap, Jamil responded by stating that the phrase is not acceptable anymore, serving as an amusing example of Jamil’s priorities.

But to her credit, at least Jamil admitted her ignorance and corrected herself; fellow Good Place star Kristen Bell stood in firm solidarity with Ellen, posting a supportive message on Instagram, along with Reese Witherspoon, who also posted an Ellen-positive Tweet.

Both stars were labelled “privileged” in response, which led to Witherspoon hastily deleting her Tweet.

The controversy invites reflection on the weird, warped way in which we view celebrities, too often hero-worshipped, their opinions listened to as though they are our friends, and the steadily growing gulf between them and their fans.

Thankfully, social media seems to be widening that gulf everyday.