NEW YORK — MrBeast, the biggest YouTube star and philanthropic force with an almost unparalleled influence among young viewers, admitted on Wednesday that he used “inappropriate language” early online, because of the many controversies that arose around him and his former collaborators.
MrBeast, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson, and the reported $700 million empire has come under new fire in the past few weeks after accusations of past racist comments by Donaldson emerged along with allegations that his long-time colleague made sexually inappropriate comments to minors.
“When Jimmy was young, he acted like a child and used inappropriate language while trying to be funny,” a spokesperson for the YouTuber said in a statement to The Associated Press. comes with an increased responsibility to be more aware and more sensitive to the power of language. After making bad jokes and other mistakes in his youth, as an adult, he has focused on joining the MrBeast community to work together to make a positive impact around the world.
Videos of wacky challenges and lavish prizes, often accompanied by expressive thumbnails and punchy titles, have garnered a record 307 million Youtube subscribers. Recent posts include “Ages 1 – 100 Decide Who Wins $250,000” and “I Built 100 Houses And Wasted It!” which, like most videos, got more than 100 million views.
The philanthropic sector has received this content with a mixture of praise for encouraging direct generosity and criticism of exploitative “porn inspiration”. Donaldson’s larger ambitions have become clear in recent years through the launch of the Feastables snack brand, a branded burger chain with bad enough reviews that the company is suing, and Amazon’s Prime Video deal for a 1,000-contestant reality competition show.
But before he overtook YouTube with his often absurd acts of charity, Donaldson built a sizable following as a gaming content creator who sometimes interacted with viewers on livestreams.
In a 2017 clip shared by YouTube influencer Rosanna Pansino in a July 24 post on X, Donaldson responded to a viewer who commented about selling black people for money and said “the most I’ll pay is 300”. Donaldson also used a homophobic slur at several points. After one of the commentators made a racist remark, Donaldson eventually instructed the audience to stop using the word in conversation.
Pansino told the AP that he has been working on various potential business ventures with Donaldson over the past few years, though none have been launched. Last fall, she publicly complained about the editing of her appearance in a MrBeast video, though she eventually deleted the post after she said she received death threats from fans.
Pansino said that contrary to popular opinion, it’s “not true” that Donaldson always makes “family-friendly content.”
“The first video, where he’s trying to be an edgy gamer and streamer, and he’s talking about horrible things and bad things — I don’t understand,” Pansino said. “I didn’t know there was any history.”
In a separate clip from a May 2017 podcast appearance, Donaldson suggested she had sex with rapper Bhad Bhabie, whose real name is Danielle Bregoli and who is 14 years old. The video has been removed for “violating YouTube’s community guidelines.”
Podcast co-host Leon Lush defended Donaldson in a video posted on X last week. Lush said that Donaldson clarified later in the episode that he “wouldn’t do it” because Bregoli was “too young” and joked that he had to “say something rude that people might take out of context.”
Lush added that the record “cringe in hindsight” and dismissed the objection as “a molehill that turned into a mountain.”
“Being not funny is seen as the worst offense here. When you mix the propensity for dark humor with the blind ambition for attention, you get “this content sometimes, said Lush. “Is being edgy the best strategy? Of course not, although sometimes it can get you attention.”
The clip emerged as internet sleuths said long-time MrBeast collaborator Ava Kris Tyson was not in contact with her little one online.
Under scrutiny were Tyson’s past conversations with teenage fans, including public posts in which the two discussed nude images and anime pornography. The fan denied any exploitation in a July 22 post on X, describing the allegations as “big lies and bending the truth.”
In a July 24 post on X, Nate Weyman said he and fans have done unpaid technical work to run Tyson’s stream and will all be playing video games together “for hours.” Weyman said Tyson had a private Discord server with about 10 people, mostly other minors around the age of 14, and often spammed the server with pornographic images.
Tyson announced he was leaving “all MrBeast and social media” in a July 23 post on X. Donaldson posted on July 24 that he was “disgusted and opposed to the unacceptable behavior” and hired an independent investigator to look into the allegations.
Tyson has been the target of transphobic attacks since he came out last year as transgender. Last April, Donaldson defended a close friend in a video describing him as a “nightmare” for MrBeast. Donaldson wrote on X then “this is getting ridiculous,” insisting on friendship and saying “this transphobia” is starting to anger him.
Last week, former employees accused Donaldson of creating a video contest, running an illegal lottery and defrauding fans. The man made the sweeping accusation under his alias in a YouTube video that has reached more than 6.9 million views since it was posted last week.
Donaldson has yet to publicly respond to these unsubstantiated claims. Chucky Appleby, who co-founded YouTube analytics platform ViewStats with Donaldson, said the former employee was fired within a month after exhibiting “misbehavior.” In a July 29 post on X, Appleby denied accusations that MrBeast faked the video and said he had been unable to hide scripted segments from “countless people on set.”
“Jimmy spends untold amounts of money and time to ensure the integrity of what he does,” Appleby said.
AP immediately sent messages to several social media users behind the various accusations, as well as fans who were not of age.
Matthew Wade, a La Trobe University sociology lecturer who focuses on charitable ethics, credits Beast Philanthropy for establishing partnerships with respected philanthropic organizations. The “gauche tone and occasional crassness” of Donaldson’s style may fit the “tremendous pressure” on nonprofits looking to support their causes, Wade told the AP in an email.
But risk calculations can change, he said.
“Charities and philanthropic foundations cannot gamble with their reputation,” Wade said. “He should be seen as a reproach above, and the constant accumulation of controversies around the MrBeast brand could easily tarnish his original shine.”
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