I’ve only heard about YouTuber Logan Paul a couple of times through my 13 year old younger brother who has said that Paul is hilarious to watch. Just the other day though, my brother proceeded to tell me all about his recent video and why he and a bunch of other young subscribers will not be clicking on his YouTube page anytime soon.
With over fifteen million subscribers and views on each video, Paul’s YouTube channel has given him fame, fortune, and a devoted fan base. It was a shock to so many when on December 31st, 2017 Paul posted of video that could ruin all of that for him.
Paul and a couple of his friends visited the “Suicide Forest” in Japan, which is a place that is known for having people commit suicide or camp out in the forest to contemplate committing suicide. Once they arrived they started filming everything. Even filming when they noticed a deceased man who hung himself from a tree. In the video the man was blurred out slightly but viewers could still make out the image. During the video Paul and his friends proceeded to zoom in on the man and at one point they laughed about their experience in the forest. At the end of the video, the YouTuber says ” I think this defiantly marks a moment in YouTube history because I’m pretty sure this has never happened to anyone on YouTube ever.”
So many people were outraged from celebrities to other YouTube stars, who made responsive videos titled “Dear Logan Paul”. The video was eventually taken off from the website.
Logan Paul did apologize in a video and a written statement on twitter stating how his actions were terrible and how his intention of posting the video were taken the wrong way. “ I didn’t do it for views. I get views. I did it because I thought I could make a positive ripple effect on the internet, not cause a monsoon of negativity. I intended to raise awareness for suicide and suicide prevention..”
Listed as one of Forbes top four most successful Youtubers, with a huge following of young viewers of the ages between 10-14, one would imagine that Paul would be more careful with what content he publishes on the internet.
Viewers are also outraged with another vlog he posted while in Japan, where he dresses up in Japanese traditional clothing running through the streets yelling, buying a fish from the local market and puts it in peoples faces and leaving it on the back of a moving taxi– among so many other “pranks”. Some say this is what he is known for and this is why he has so many views on his videos.
Have we come to a place in the world where we are so comfortable posting on social media, that we will go to whatever length it takes to get a like or a view? How could this have been prevented? It also raises the question with Youtube, and why they left the video up for as long as they did.
After hearing about this scandal, I couldn’t help but think about the new Netflix show Black Mirror. Black Mirror is about what a future may look like with technology and how it may be used to invade our personal lives. Is this slowly becoming our reality? After all, the man Logan Paul filmed had no say in being publicized and it is likely his family did not want that on the internet.
Let us know your thoughts on this issue.
Until next time,
Gaby V.