TikToker Keith Lee Speaks Out Against Rumors He Is a ‘Thief’

Issue #105 | Feb. 2, 2023

Hi everyone, happy Black History Month. We have an exciting line up of features this month celebrating Black creators, activists, business leaders, and stories. Stay tuned!

This week, we’re exploring a viral story about food TikToker Keith Lee, who recently spoke out against false rumors that he stole a producer’s idea for a TV show pilot. In a viral exposé, the producer lamented how unnamed “food critic and thief” took her idea, and users speculated it was Lee. After Lee spoke out, the producer clapped back, claiming she never said she was speaking about Lee in the first place and criticizing Lee for driving hate comments to her page.

As Passionfruit contributor Rebekah Harding explains, this story sparked a debate with many creators and influencers chiming in on the dangers of innuendo, rumors, and miscommunication online. Lawyers also shared with Passionfruit how this case touches on interesting issues of copyright, defamation, and entertainment law. Read more below.

– Grace Stanley, Newsletter Editor

THE DARK SIDE

Food TikToker Keith Lee speaks out against false rumors he stole someone’s TV idea, sparking debate about the dangers of innuendo online

‘I have not once stolen anything or taken anything from anybody.’

By Rebekah Harding, Passionfruit Contributor

→ READ THE FULL STORY

ONE GREAT TIP

“People follow people, not companies.”
—Mekanism Chief Social Officer Brendan Gahan provides a key takeaway from Creator Economy Live 2023 via TikTok.

NEW FRONTIERS

‘A lot of us are natural storytellers’: NeverEnding caters to a different kind of creator

NeverEnding is an up-and-coming platform that lets camera-shy creatives get a chance to share content via avatars and animation.

By Alexandra Bower, Passionfruit Contributor

READ THE FULL STORY →

IN THE BIZ

Twitch streamer Atrioc is facing blowback for his dissemination of explicit deep fakes of female creators like QTCinderella and Sweet Anita, among others. (via Vice)
Twitter announced plans to charge an annual fee for API access, making it harder to develop third party bots on the platform. (via CNBC)
On the flipside, Musk also hinted at new monetization features for creators launching in beta next week. (via Insider)
Creative Juice is launching an initiative to fund and provide educational resources for up-and-coming Black creators.
Calls by lawmakers to ban TikTok in the U.S. continue to mount, the latest coming from Democratic Senator Michael Bennet of Colorado. (via CNN)
Internal Slack messages from CNET parent company Red Ventures reveal how business leaders are getting skittish about publishing AI-generated content. (via Futurism)
Pokimane revealed she has a team to help her block hate accounts. (via Dexerto)