Witney Carson, the professional dancer from Dancing With the Stars and recent winner of the competition alongside her dancing partner Robert Irwin, has come under fire after posting a series of Instagram Stories describing some incidents that occurred during flights with her son.
The posts—one of which surfaced on Reddit in a post shared by u/AppearanceAsleep128—detail exchanges that Carson said she and her family experienced while traveling.
There have been broader public conversations about etiquette, expectations, and empathy during air travel—particularly where young children are involved.
A June 2023 survey of 1,000 adults from the U.S. and Canada, conducted for Kayak, found that most travelers are supportive of families flying with young children.
According to the survey, respondents said that “you are allowed to bring a toddler” because 78 percent of travelers “don’t put themselves before the well-being of families.”
Respondents also agree that “you are allowed to bring a baby” because 74 percent say “travelers aren’t monsters.” However, passengers also believe “you are not allowed to tell off other people’s kids for misbehaving” because 90 percent think “that’s not your job.”
A report by Parade said Carson first addressed one situation in an Instagram Story shared on January 25, asking followers: “Question for you guys, and be honest—is it appropriate to ask for a child to be quiet for the entire 13 hour flight?” She said that her son Jet had been ‘playing and giggling’ when a man seated in front of them asked for quiet because he was trying to rest.
Carson said she understood the need for rest on long flights but noted it was “the middle of the day,” adding that she believed in “worry[ing] about things that are in your control and put some freaking ear plugs in,” before asking: “Am I being crazy?”
Shortly after, Carson described another moment on the plane trip in which a flight attendant repeatedly “shushed” Jet. According to Parade, Carson wrote that she approached the attendant to ask whether there were designated quiet times during the journey. She said that while she would respect such expectations, she did not “expect [her] children to sit [quietly] for 13 hours.” She ended the post with: “Okay bye I’m done.”
A few days later, Carson returned to Instagram Stories to recount what she said was yet another incident—one she claimed her husband did not tell her about during the flight because “he knew I would have lost it.” Posting a selfie image, Carson wrote: “Just learned about ANOTHER unpleasant plane interaction from Carson and I’m so glad he didn’t tell me on the flight or I would have freaked.”
Parade reported that she then shared an image of her husband holding Jet in the aisle, writing: “I’m not going to put a mask on my already screaming two year old after a 30 hour travel day when he’s not sick—Get a grip!!!!”
The Reddit post shared by u/AppearanceAsleep128 included a screenshot from this Instagram Story, in which text overlaid on the image said that Jet had been crying for a few minutes during a nighttime flight when a woman wearing a mask tapped Carson’s husband on the shoulder. The woman reportedly told him she would “feel more comfortable” if the child wore a mask because “he looks sick.”
According to the screenshot, Carson’s husband replied that Jet “isn’t sick” and that “his cheeks get red when he cries.” The caption of the Instagram Story ended with the message: “Mind your business people.”
‘Stop Complaining’
The reaction to Carson’s response was overwhelmingly critical on Reddit. Many users accused Carson of being insensitive or out of touch.
U/Fearless‑Guidance921 wrote: “I’m sorry but people are literally dying and this is what she keeps going on about???”
U/BeanEireannach commented that Carson was acting like “the centre of her own tone deaf universe.”
U/AffectionateRace9865 criticized her posts in light of her recent travel, saying: “Kids are absolutely allowed to exist, but god she’s so tone deaf. Get a journal.”
Similarly, U/Dangerous_Fix1157 added: “We can’t relate to your rich lifestyle girl, stop complaining.”
Others echoed the sentiment, with one commenter, U/throwaway182883831, writing: “I normally like her but she’s really giving nasty main character energy with these stories.”
Another user, U/team‑pup‑n‑suds, summed up the frustration, writing: “Just complain about this s*** to your family, my god.”
Newsweek has contacted the representatives for Carson for comment via email.
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