TOGETHER WITH

It’s Friday and Taco Bell has announced plans to add Voice AI to “hundreds of stores” by the end of 2024. At least a robot won’t judge your late-night Crunchwrap runs…right?

🗞️ Today’s News 🗞️

• MrBeast is under fire over allegations of unsafe filming conditions 😬

• Twitch lost 10% of its market share in just three months 📉

• Netflix’s fourth annual Geeked Weekend is almost here 📺

CREATOR CONTROVERSY

MrBeast apologizes for past “inappropriate language,” has yet to address alleged safety issues

The controversy: MrBeast is in the hot seat. Just days after the public removal of former team member Ava Kris Tyson, the YouTuber (aka Jimmy Donaldson) is fielding allegations that contestants are facing unsafe conditions while filming his $100 million Amazon show, Beast Games.

At the same time, creators like Rosanna Pansino have begun calling attention to racist and vulgar comments Donaldson made during his early YouTube career.

The allegations: In a video series addressing both controversies, Pansino (who herself competed in a MrBeast challenge in 2021) revealed that she’d spoken to over 200 people involved in Beast Games. Many reported a lack of food, water, sleep, and medical attention.

That same source accused the show of being “rigged” in favor of young male contestants, some of whom allegedly physically targeted female competitors after realizing they could “take out the women without being eliminated.” Once filming wrapped, all contestants were allegedly offered $1,000 to surrender their rights to participate in future class action lawsuits.

It’s interesting to note these allegations are similar to the ones directed at Netflix‘s Squid Game: The Challenge reality show, which debuted late last year.

The response: Donaldson hasn’t yet acknowledged the claims surrounding Beast Games. However, a MrBeast spokesperson responded to The Associated Press regarding comments the creator made in 2017. At the time, a 19-year-old Donaldson joked that he wouldn’t pay more than $300 to buy a Black person and made a sexual reference to then-14-year-old rapper Bhad Babie.

As the spokesperson noted, Donaldson has “repeatedly apologized” for his past comments. Here’s the full statement:

• “When Jimmy was a teenager he acted like many kids and used inappropriate language while trying to be funny. Over the years he has repeatedly apologized and has learned that increasing influence comes with increased responsibility to be more aware and more sensitive to the power of language. After making some bad jokes and other mistakes when he was younger, as an adult he has focused on engaging with the MrBeast community to work together on making a positive impact around the world.”

Meanwhile, a viral video posted by a former employee accused Donaldson of rigging challenges and conducting illegal lotteries. MrBeast team member Chucky Appleby, however, posted a response on X “debunking” those claims.

More details related to this story are in Tubefilter’s full coverage. Updates wil be posted there, too.

HEADLINES IN BRIEF 📰

• New data shows that Twitch lost around 10% of its market share over the last three months. Are Kick and YouTube to blame? (Tubefilter)
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• Meta’s Threads app hit 200 million users earlier this week, marking an increase of roughly 25 million over the course of one month. (Engadget)

• A lawsuit from former CNN anchor Don Lemon claims that X approached him to host a (now-cancelled) show “under false pretenses” in order to woo back disgruntled advertisers. (Gizmodo)
  
  

• The Kids Online Safety Act sailed through the Senate despite the best efforts of 300+ high schoolers, who urged legislators to kill the bill mere hours before its passage. (The Verge)

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With keynotes, panels, and roundtables spanning everything from thumbnail creation to global audience-building and creator product lines, VidSummit 2024 is the can’t-miss event of the year. 

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WATCH THIS 📺

Netflix just gave us a sneak peek at Geeked Week 2024

The big event: Geeked Week is almost here. For the last four years, Netflix’s annual celebration of “global fandoms” has thrilled viewers with surprise teasers, drops, and an in-person event centered around the streamer’s top properties.

• Now, Netflix is priming its subscribers for the 2024 edition of Geeked Week. A recent teaser revealed a September 16 launch data, along with a flurry of easter eggs hinting at the content viewers can expect to see throughout the week.
  
  

• Fans of series like Stranger Things, Wednesday, and Arcane will want to take a closer look at that trailer, which can be found on Netflix’s YouTube account.

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Today's newsletter is from: Emily Burton, Sam Gutelle, and Josh Cohen. Drew Baldwin helped edit, too. It's a team effort.