Kerry Washington, InStyle react to skin lightening scandal

Don't worry critics. She's handled it.

InStyle's new issue, featuring Kerry Washington on the cover, recently caused a stir -- and now both the magazine and the "Scandal" actress are speaking up.

Social media was abuzz this week with critics who charged the magazine had digitally lightened Washington's skin for the cover shot. People chimed in with tweets like this one from @drtruthspeaker: "Kerry Washington looks so different from the dark brown skin girl with thick nose she used to be."

Or this one from ‏@alstonboy4315: "I don't know why these magazines keep lightening Kerry Washington's skin. It's disgusting and they should be ashamed!!!"

InStyle has since released the following statement: "We are super fans of Kerry Washington here at InStyle. To feature her on the cover of our March spring fashion issue is both an honor and a delight. We have heard from those who have spoken out about our newsstand cover photograph, concerned that Kerry's skin tone was lightened. While we did not digitally lighten Kerry's skin tone, our cover lighting has likely contributed to this concern. We understand that this has resulted in disappointment and hurt. We are listening, and the feedback has been valuable."

Washington, meanwhile, chimed in on Twitter:

Tell us: What do you think about the InStyle cover?