Who is Hannah Barron, the catfish girl?

Hannah Barron, a nature-loving social media influencer with millions of followers across several platforms, recently spoke out about criticisms her posts received from Sameera Khan, a controversial Pakistani-American journalist, on X. Here’s what you need to know about Barron, and what the war of words is about.

According to her Instagram bio, Barron is a 27-year-old woman from Alabama who posts about fishing and hunting, among other outdoor activities, like “noodling,” or catfishing with your bare hands — hence Barron’s nickname “Catfish Girl.” Her TikTok has more than two million followers, and she has 1.5 million followers on Instagram.

Meanwhile, Barron’s Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat posts are often set in extreme, rugged environments, along with the sizable fish and animals she has caught. She also speaks in a thick Southern drawl, which, based on comments, is part of what many fans like about her.

The Sameera Khan controversy

At one point, Hannah Barron shared a video of herself building a house with her father, and Sameera Khan — known for hardline “anti-woke” opinions — posted on X that Barron’s accent should be “illegal” and that women shouldn’t do manual labor like work construction. Khan’s X account is set to approved followers only, but her Barron-related comments are widely reported.

In her post, Khan also upheld Melania Trump as the epitome of female virtue, and called American women “literally men” while accusing Barron of being a “tomboy.” Many of Khan’s followers piled on the outspoken journalist and former beauty pageant contestant regarding her Barron hot take. And on March 11, Barron posted a response.

Barron shared her thoughts on Instagram

In her more than two-minute Instagram response to Sameera Khan’s comments about her, Hannah Barron said, “I would tell y’all this girl’s name, but I can’t remember it because I don’t have a clue who she is, so that should tell you how relevant this person is.”

Barron added that when she was young, she used to be made fun of for fishing and hunting. ” … [B]ack then it wasn’t cool for women to hunt or fish or the whole country lifestyle.” she said, adding, “I’m so proud of all the women in the outdoors now who are making that more cool or popular. So proud of us. I think we’re doing great.”

Meanwhile, Barron’s Instagram post was captioned in part, ” … [D]on’t be afraid to be your own person. Embrace your own individuality. Don’t try to fit into anyone else’s box. And most importantly, don’t let the opinions of others get you down!”

And in the comments, Barron’s fans made it pretty clear which said they were on. ” … Classy response to a classless comment for no other reason than to cut you down,” one said. And another added, “The accent is the best.”