--- description: People on Twitter are upset with Ellen DeGeneres for photoshopping herself riding Usain Bolt's back title: Twitter Blasts Ellen DeGeneres for Usain Bolt Meme image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5fe93d7d60c4f816/6988a295fb4eac3ac088ec36/ellen-degeneres-usain-bolt-photo.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Entertainment](/section/entertainment/) ## Entertainment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [celebrities](/tag/celebrities/) ## celebrities Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Twitter Blasts Ellen DeGeneres for Usain Bolt Meme by [Mahita Gajanan](/author/mahita-gajanan/) ## Mahita Gajanan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Gajanan is an editor at TIME. Aug 16, 2016 5:58 PM CUT  Ellen DeGeneres attends the UK Premiere of "Finding Dory" at Odeon Leicester Square on July 10, 2016 in London, England. Ellen DeGeneres attends the UK Premiere of "Finding Dory" at Odeon Leicester Square on July 10, 2016 in London, England.Anthony Harvey—Getty Images by [Mahita Gajanan](/author/mahita-gajanan/) ## Mahita Gajanan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Gajanan is an editor at TIME. Aug 16, 2016 5:58 PM CUT The internet is angry with Ellen DeGeneres for photoshopping herself riding Usain Bolt’s back onto a [now-famous image of Bolt smiling](http://time.com/4452585/usain-bolt-2016-rio-olympics/ "undefined") as he sprints toward the gold medal in the 100-meter race at the [Rio Olympics](http://time.com/topic/2016-rio-olympics/ "undefined"). DeGeneres [shared the picture](https://twitter.com/TheEllenShow/status/765303894159208448 "undefined") on Monday, with a caption that said, “This is how I’m running errands from now on.” The tweet prompted immediate backlash from many users who said the image was racist for showing a white woman riding on the back of a black man. > [](https://twitter.com/TheEllenShow/status/765303894159208448) In the replies to DeGeneres’s tweet, people called the photo “offensive,” and said that by appearing to ride Bolt’s back, the daytime talk show host likened him to a mule or a piece of property. > [](https://twitter.com/Jhoratio/status/765324985799938048) > [](https://twitter.com/MiQL/status/765336547273027584) > [](https://twitter.com/JazzleDazzler/status/765334023262515200) Others jumped to DeGeneres’s defense, and said she was not racist, but just commenting on Bolt’s speed. > [](https://twitter.com/BryanIsTheKing/status/765338844443082752) > [](https://twitter.com/fourfivehours/status/765355285410033665) DeGeneres acknowledged the backlash in a tweet on Tuesday. > [](https://twitter.com/TheEllenShow/status/765576291160580096) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4454779/ellen-degeneres-usain-bolt-twitter-meme/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4454779/ellen-degeneres-usain-bolt-twitter-meme/"},"headline":"Twitter Blasts Ellen DeGeneres for Usain Bolt Meme","datePublished":"2016-08-16T17:58:52.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T00:01:13.635Z","description":"People online said the photoshopped image was racist","url":"https://time.com/4454779/ellen-degeneres-usain-bolt-twitter-meme/","keywords":["celebrities"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5fe93d7d60c4f816/6988a295fb4eac3ac088ec36/ellen-degeneres-usain-bolt-photo.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Mahita Gajanan","jobTitle":"Gajanan is an editor at TIME.","url":"https://time.com/author/mahita-gajanan/"}],"articleSection":"Entertainment","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5fe93d7d60c4f816/6988a295fb4eac3ac088ec36/ellen-degeneres-usain-bolt-photo.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"\"Finding Dory\" - UK Premiere - Red Carpet","caption":"\"Finding Dory\" - UK Premiere - Red Carpet","creditText":"Anthony Harvey—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/entertainment/","name":"Entertainment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/celebrities/","name":"celebrities"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4454779/ellen-degeneres-usain-bolt-twitter-meme/","name":"Twitter Blasts Ellen DeGeneres for Usain Bolt Meme"}}]}] ```