Selena Gomez 'hurt' by Justin fans

Selena Gomez is "hurt" by jealous Justin Bieber fans criticising her.

The 18-year-old singer-and-actress, who has been the target of an online hate campaign since images were released of her kissing the pop star last month, has admitted the harsh words written about her on websites such as twitter have been difficult to cope with.

She said: "It's hard. It hurts, it really does. I don't feel like I'm doing anything wrong. I've been best friends with him for a very long time. It does hurt my feelings a lot but I try not to focus on it. I have a strong family and great fans."

However, the pretty brunette says she understands why she is being attacked, confessing she remembers being jealous of her 'Monte Carlo' co-star Katie Cassidy when she dated former teenage heartthrob Jesse McCartney.

She explained on radio show Z100: "I loved Jesse McCartney. I was obsessed with him. He dated Katie Cassidy when he was 16 or 17. I hated her, absolutely hated her. I was mortified that he was with Katie and I wanted to be with him. He was my screen-saver!"

"I just did a movie with Katie Cassidy and she was the nicest person ever."

Recently Selena told of how her new song 'Who Says?' addresses the threats, saying: "Within that world, there's just such easy access to people's feelings. This song is such a great message to my fans, and it really touched me when I heard it.

"Basically, it's to the haters, it's to the people who try to bring you down."