Clayton Echard Had This to Say About His Critics

Getty Clayton Echard

Clayton Echard is responding to critics of his controversial turn as “The Bachelor.”

Echard was asked about the criticism on “Clickbait with Bachelor Nation” by hosts Joe Amabile, Natasha Parker, and Deandra Kanu-Clayton. Amabile called him one of the most controversial Bachelors ever.

You can download the podcast here. The podcast is 1 hour and 2 minutes long. In it, Clayton discussed everything from whether it’s possible to fall in love with more than one person to hometown dates and criticism of his star turn. The podcast is free.

Here’s what you need to know:

Echard Blamed Social Media for the Criticism He’s Getting & Said He Leans on His Family Members

ABCClayton Echard’s season of “The Bachelor” is over, but his quest to find love is not.

Asked whom he leans on for emotional support, Echard says in the podcast that he lives with his brother, who makes fun of him and says he has “no game” while they watch episodes of “The Bachelor” together. His other brother, mom and dad, check in with Echard regularly, he said.

Echard told the hosts that “people would just wait until the full story is out” before “casting their judgments.”

He blamed technology and the speed of social media.

“Today’s day and age, everybody likes to jump and push their opinion out as quick as they can…with technology and Twitter and all these different avenues, we’re able to get out our opinions as quick as possible. There are a lot of opinions, and there’s some validity to them,” Echard said. But he said he leans on his friends and family to get through them.

He did admit that he “did not do things perfectly.”

“I’ve had really great conversations with previous bachelors[and] bachelorettes that have really put it in perspective that, ‘hey, a lot of what you’re feeling, a lot of this hate that you see online is temporary. And it can change very quickly.'” After having those conversations, he said, there were certain things he’d done that deserve him to face criticism.

Echard contacted former Bachelors Matt James and Nick Viall “for their advice and support,” according to E! News.

Echard Also Discussed the Upcoming Finale

ABCClayton Echard’s “After the Final Rose” will air after “The Bachelor” finale.

The caption for the podcast reads,

Clayton, the Bachelor himself, stops by and reveals what surprised him most while filming ‘Women Tell All,’ what advice he’s received from former Bachelors and Bachelorettes to help him cope with everything that comes along with that role, what we can expect from his upcoming finale, and SO much more!

Then, Joe, Natasha, and special guest co-host Deandra weigh in on the newest form of dating torture — the ‘talking phase.’

Plus, they discuss all the top headlines in the Bachelor Nation Breakdown.

As for hometown dates, he said in the podcast that they only “solidified” what he was already feeling. He said he was looking to see if his connections with all of the women improved, but it was “the opposite.” Asked about his mental state going into the Women Tell All, he revealed to the podcasters, “I was excited at first.” He said it felt “surreal.”

Echard said that it was “crazy…I’m about to jump back into it with these women.” He said he was surprised by the amount of “backlash” he received from women. He said he tends to give people second chances as long as they’re apologetic. He was hoping the women would do the same for him, but he felt like he was going in “front of a firing squad” and got “wrecked.” He was hoping for a little more “grace,” he said.

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