Why foolish Hamilton would be wrong to hide

If you polled every racing fan under the sun, the perfect driver would be all manner of things - brave, aggressive, super-fast on track, and not content with a dull corporate image off it. They would be outspoken and honest, with a rags-to-riches, underdog, did-it-their-way backstory, while maintaining a humble grounding that shows they never forget where they have come from.

The current crop of Formula 1 drivers display many excellent qualities, but none are 'perfect'. Closest is Lewis Hamilton. He's a super-fast and super-successful racing driver despite being a black man who didn't grow up in privilege. You only need to look at the general motorsport demographic to know that either one of those is enough to make a racing career unlikely, let alone the chance to be one of the greatest F1 drivers of all time.

He's also plagued with an air of arrogance - or self-belief, if you want to be generous. It's part of what fuels his brilliance in a racing car of course and it's not necessarily a criticism, but it means he could never really qualify as humble.

Now is not the time to dive into why we should enjoy witnessing racing royalty perform in front of our eyes. It is the time to discuss one particular trait: his openness, how he connects with fans and shares parts of his life that several F1 drivers simply do not offer.

Or should that be how he connected. You're unlikely to have missed the outcry when Hamilton published a video over the holidays of him with his nephew, who was proudly wearing a Christmas-gifted princess dress.

The four-time world champion says he is "so sad" and criticises his nephew because "boys don't wear princess dresses". The public scorned him and Hamilton apologised profusely. This week, whether by consequence or independent inspiration, he carried out a total wipe of his social media channels. His feeds are empty. We're all in the dark.

His openness has always been good for F1 fans, whether it's another manifestation of his arrogance or an insistence he should not have to hide just because the spotlight shines harder on him than most. Hamilton has no obligation to be that way. He could just leave it to sponsored/promoted tweets and the like, or ignore it altogether. Others do.

Hamilton, and his social media activity, is scrutinised intensely by members of the public and the media inside the F1 bubble and out of it. The video with his nephew is evidence he is capable of extreme foolishness, and maybe the backlash was the last straw.

More likely, he's just preparing for a fresh start on his channels. It looks a curious strategy but it's not unheard of, especially in celebrity circles - popstar Taylor Swift did it just last summer, for example.

When people twist stupid words and actions into something more sinister to either support or defend the offender, they do not aid the debate at all

Hamilton hasn't deleted the account, which is sensible. Building a readership of more than five million followers is not the work of a moment. If he wants a clean slate to work from, this is the best way to do it while retaining his impressive audience, which on Twitter alone is almost double that of the next best (Fernando Alonso).

This shouldn't be the end of authentic Hamilton social media use because he has always felt the most real of the F1 drivers. Flaunting his diamond-encrusted lifestyle has never really bothered me because we all do it, we just brag to differing degrees. We know more about what Hamilton likes and how he lives away from the track than any other driver.

The more important reason for wanting it to be a temporary hiatus is that Hamilton will return with a greater awareness of how powerful the microscope is when five million people follow you and you slip up. He needs to be more careful about what he writes and shares because, like it or not, he is a person with extreme social responsibility.

The idea that we should be self-censored, particularly in the context of praising Hamilton's openness, will probably annoy many. Every case is different, though. If Hamilton speaks out about US president Donald Trump stoking division over racial issues, that is going to anger Trump supporters - but it's part of a wider push for equality, and that is commendable.

If Hamilton tells a child to conform to gender stereotypes, then broadcasts that message to millions of other people who view him as a role model, it's a completely different type of negative consequence. Many people struggle with the issue of identification, and similar social pressures or expectations, and it's a very conflicting message for someone who usually says 'be yourself' to inadvertently add the caveat 'so long as you're normal'.

Of course, it is hypocritical to espouse a view that contradicts a personal belief. It is not hypocritical to stop and think, 'What am I actually saying?' - that's why Hamilton apologised so swiftly and profusely. He realised it for what it was: a real balls-up, with much bigger consequences than he had ever imagined.

It doesn't make you a snowflake to want people to realise actions have consequences and hurting people by accident or design is wrong. Likewise, it doesn't make you insensitive or an enemy of equality to acknowledge Hamilton screwed up royally, but draw the line at saying he is a staunch supporter of hardline gender roles. When people twist stupid words and actions into something more sinister to either support or defend the offender, they do not aid the debate at all.

"My deepest apologies for my behaviour as I realise it is really not acceptable for anyone, no matter where you are from, to marginalise or stereotype anyone," Hamilton said in a sequence of tweets that, like the rest, have since been deleted. "I have always been in support of anyone living their life exactly how they wish and I hope I can be forgiven for this lapse in judgement."

Many have not forgiven him. His video triggered a large amount of responses, and it's not stopped since it became clear his feeds were being deleted. Some points have been valid, others either shocking in their tone/content or downright abusive. Many have missed the opportunity to engage in a discussion, trading the chance to talk about just why what he said could be damaging for mud-slinging and building arguments-upon-arguments.

Trial by social media is a chastening experience, as Hamilton knows all too well. Regardless of the real reason for doing it, clearing his feeds has at least suggested it is linked to what happened over the holidays. It also, by unfortunate coincidence, eliminated his original admission it was a stupid error, his apology and his request for forgiveness.

Hamilton got so much stick because of the reach his social media status has, but he should not hide. I doubt his feeds will stay silent for long and when he returns he should use his platform to be a loud, public, responsible voice for the positivity and equality he claims he wants to see in the world.

The best way to get the pardon he desires is to earn it - actions speak louder than deleted words.