Popular Podcast Host Paige Desorbo Talks Decision to Show Acne on Social Media

Encouraged by fan praise, the reality TV star chose to start sharing more bare-faced content on Instagram.

Paige Desorbo / Monica Schipper/Getty Images

As a cohost of the popular podcast Giggly Squad, Paige Desorbo has built an impressive following over the past few years. In every episode, she and her best friend, comedian Hannah Berner, talk everything from pop culture and television to their relationships and personal lives.

The appeal of the weekly podcast lies in the pairs’ dedication to sharing honest outtakes from their lives—and their ability to make listeners (and each other) laugh. That sort of honesty is exactly what Desorbo has embraced on her Instagram page. Between her stories and posts, she shares real content—as entertaining as it is inspiring.

Followers can see it, particularly, in her approach to sharing bare-faced selfies, choosing not to cover up acne and breakouts. In a recent interview with People, Desorbo admitted that she used to hide her acne with both makeup and various hairstyles. “I feel people don’t give girls enough credit on how sneaky we can be with our hairstyles,” she said. “I was always trying to put my hair in front of my face because I would always get it on my cheekbones.”

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But a few things encouraged her to stop covering up and start sharing her bare face online. The podcast host joined the cast of reality TV show, Summer House, in 2019. “Being on TV, I actually felt more empowered to go with no makeup at all,” she told People. The decision earned her a lot of praise from fans, who appreciated her honest content.

It was her realization that showing her acne “[was] helping so many other girls” that encouraged her to start sharing her bare skin more often on Instagram. Now—in the hopes of helping followers and fans who look up to her—she doesn’t shy away from sharing honest outtakes from her life, whether on episodes of Giggly Squad or on her Instagram.