Logan Paul had been relatively silent following the debacle surrounding the extremely distasteful video he posted just last year of Japan’s Suicide Forest, in which he proceeded to film the body of a suicide victim. After stumbling upon the body, Paul continued to film everything, including his very inappropriate reactions. It was undoubtedly an extremely distasteful video, and it was cause for concern for the entire YouTube community.
Other creators were disgusted over Paul’s behaviour, and they were worried that said behaviour would be used to generalise all creators. The video was also a very disturbing watch for the approximately 16 million people subscribed to his channel- especially because many of Paul’s viewers are children.
The outcry over this video reached all corners of the internet, and many fans were incredibly disappointed in Paul’s video, but the YouTuber’s channel remained popular.
Due to the fact that it seemed like almost every level-headed human being with access to the internet was upset with Logan Paul, he deleted the offensive video and released another video, apologising for his despicable behaviour. He promised to work on being better. The sincerity of the video was questioned, but the situation died down following months of Logan Paul laying low.
Logan Paul has re-emerged, seemingly unscathed by previous wrong-doings, with more incredibly disturbing videos and tweets.
Recently, he allegedly tweeted that he will be “swallowing 1 tide pod per retweet”, dangerously referencing the incredibly harmful Tide Pod challenge that has been sweeping through the internet.
A recent video posted on his channel has once again drawn in disdain from his viewers. In the video in question, Paul takes a fish out of water and proceeds to jokingly give it CPR. Later, in the same video, he tasers dead rats, apparently to ensure “that they are really dead”. Animal activists did not appreciate the video, and it really isn’t a very nice thing to watch. Many have speculated that Logan Paul had placed the rats there himself for content purposes.
YouTube has realised that Logan Paul’s videos reflect badly on real, worthwhile creators, and have finally taken some real action against him. They have temporarily stopped his ad revenue. Advertising is one of the main ways in which creators make money, and this will definitely affect Paul financially.
A YouTube spokesperson told Quartz:
“After careful consideration, we have decided to temporarily suspend ads on Logan Paul’s YouTube channels. This is not a decision we made lightly, however we believe he has exhibited a pattern of behaviour in his videos that makes his channel not only unsuitable for advertisers, but also potentially damaging to the broader creator community.”
If he continues to make such unsavoury videos in violation of YouTube’s polices, ads could possibly be permanently disabled.
Let’s hope that Logan Paul truly learns his lesson this time, and becomes a better role model for his millions of followers.
