Red-Pilled Children in Trucker Hats

Issue #169 | September 19, 2023

Yesterday, I had the unfortunate luck of setting my eyes upon a viral clip of a fan meet-and-greet gone wrong with a notoriously transphobic, YouTube-banned, self-proclaimed Red Pilled Rumble streamer known as “Sneako.” In the video, three little boys (probably around 12 years old?) dressed up as trucker-hat-wearing mini-me replicas of their favorite streamer. In cartoonish glee, they shouted at the influencer, “Fuck the women! Fuck the women!” When the influencer looked back in surprise and clarified, “No, we love women!” The children replied, “We love women but not, like, transgenders. … Fuck gays. All gays should die.”

The influencer (at least to me) looked genuinely a bit sobered up and shocked by the children’s bluntness. That said, upon further reflection, Sneako decided to double down—he later tweeted that “boys will be boys,” and blamed “rainbow flags in classrooms” for the incident. Unsurprising, given his history.

Sneako first crossed my Twitter feed (though I didn’t know his name at the time) as an ex-member of the MrBeast team, when he went viral for calling one of his former coworkers “delusional” and mentally ill for coming out as trans. He rose to prominence as a leading figure in the Red Pill incel community and became notorious for discussing incel theory with Andrew Tate and having race debates with white nationalist streamer Nick Fuentes. On YouTube, Sneako amassed over 2,000,000 subscribers, before being permanently banned for community guideline violations. Now, he’s on the wild, unmoderated west of alternative streaming platform Rumble.

Does Sneako live in a vacuum? Has he never met a child before? It’s weird how surprised he seemed, and makes one wonder if he imagines his audience to be older than it is.

Of course, it’s well-known in the adult world that people online often don’t fully mean what they say, as the internet rewards controversy and dumpster-fire-starting. But kids are frickin’ sponges, and how can children know when people are saying inflammatory things to try to get as many eyeballs as possible and make money off of them? (Check out the FTC’s new guidelines that dropped yesterday about influencers’ “stealth” advertising to children, it’s wild).

THE COMMENTS SECTION

“Dedicated hate is more powerful than fleeting love. Certain social media superstars radiate positivity and are gone within a year or two. Others are considered “internet cockroaches”—really—and they have a decade-plus of online relevancy and profit to show for it.”
Journalist Kat Tenbarge on the “dirty little secret” of influencing.

The Sneako clip is a real Frankenstein moment, the most recent in a long line of media personalities being surprised when faced with what they created. It bears resemblance to other right-wing figures like Ben Shapiro and Tim Pool who appeared surprised and defensive after social media logs of mass shooters revealed they were rapidly consuming the right-wingers’ content leading up to their acts of violence. Really, what do these people expect to happen?

Anyways, speaking of IRL meet-ups with influencers, Passionfruit contributor Steven Asarch went to a bar crawl meet-up of one of the most controversial influencers in New York City—WorldofTshirts. After signing a waiver for risks of “rat bites” and “falling debris,” he embarks on a journey that shows just how revealing seeing someone in the real world can be.

– Grace Stanley, Newsletter and Features Editor

IRL

An Honest Review of the WorldofTShirts Experience

After a night with one of TikTok’s most notorious personalities, I was left disturbed by how TikTok’s algorithm distorts how we see creators.

By Steven Asarch, Passionfruit Contributor

→ READ THE FULL STORY

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IN THE BIZ

Video editing software Adobe Premiere Pro can now automatically remove “ums,” “uhs,”’ and background noise from videos.
TikTok got slapped with a whopping $368 million fine in the wake of Europe’s stringent data privacy regulations, sending a clear message on data protection.
Speaking of TikTok, the company says its ad campaign impressions might be undervalued due to measurement issues, potentially impacting click-through rates and advertising strategies.
Creators Kevin Paffrath and Tom Nash are among those who have settled their lawsuit with FTX, marking a resolution in their legal dispute with the bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange.
Discord is offering a beta testing application for its new feature, “Server Shops,” which allows creators to sell things like downloadable PDFs, books, guides, digital art, premium server roles, and server subscriptions. It’s a 90-10 revenue split, with creators getting 90%. You can join the company’s waitlist here.

BOSS-LEVEL BATTLES

Streamer PointCrow Turned ‘YouTube Into a Video Game’

Eric Morino, known online as PointCrow, has managed to push the boundaries of modded games and overcome challenges from some formidable foes, like game publishing titan Nintendo.

By Steven Asarch, Passionfruit Contributor

READ THE FULL STORY →

AI MUSIC JUST ISN’T THE SAME

It’s Time to Take Down AI Taylor Swift

Online fan communities have been overrun with AI song covers. Fans have to make it stop.

By Kristin Snyder, Passionfruit Contributor

READ THE FULL STORY →

JOB BOARD

True crime podcast “Murder With My Husband” is looking for a video editor.
Gaming creator Tyrecordslol is looking for a thumbnail designer.
“Minecraft” channel Top10Speed is looking for a YouTube producer.
Tech creator Hipyo Tech is looking for a video editor.

FROM THE PICKET LINE

Ever wanted Adam Scott to walk your dog? What about getting a watercolor portrait of said dog by John Lithgow? Or maybe you wanted to hang out with the cast of “Bones”?

All these things and more are available currently on eBay as part of The Union Solidarity Coalition Auction, with the proceeds going to a mutual aid fund for crew workers who lost health insurance as work is disrupted from the writers’ strike. Solidarity forever!