Stella Parton, sister of the late Dolly Parton, has criticised the "tremendous amount of AI and endless garbage" flooding social media in the wake of her sister's death. In an Instagram post, she said the family has faced "incredible pressure and insensitivity from strangers" and accused certain parties of exploiting the tragedy for attention, predicting they would soon move on to fresh misinformation elsewhere. Her comments highlight growing concerns among public figures' families about AI-generated content and false claims spreading rapidly after a celebrity's death.

While thanking those who had shown genuine support during the family's bereavement, Stella Parton said the Partons would recover "in time" but would each grieve in their own way. She added that Dolly, who died on 25 August following a brief illness with cancer, would have been touched by the outpouring of love shown to her and the family, noting that Dolly had deliberately avoided commenting on politics, religion or other public figures because she valued her relationship with fans and the public.