The Fall of Logan Paul

By: Cayden J Halim

Edited by: Fiorina Siamir

Trigger Warning: this article contains topics of suicide.

With the age of social media, many ‘influencers’ have built careers off of posting videos on the internet through platforms like YouTube or TikTok. To get more views, influencers are willing to compromise their integrity to an extent through clickbait, which is the use of text or a thumbnail designed to attract attention. It adds an element of dishonesty, enticing users by using content that does not accurately reflect what is being delivered. It is commonly used in videos, but how far are people willing to go to get more views, and how far are they willing to compromise their morals in exchange for money? 

YouTuber Logan Paul rose to fame in 2015 by posting vlogs on his YouTube Channel. Today, he has over 23.6 million YouTube subscribers and has even ventured into professional wrestling, signing for WWE in 2021. However, things haven’t always been smooth sailing, as he faced bouts of controversy in early 2018. December 31st, 2017, was undeniably the most controversial moment in Paul’s career when he made his infamous trip to Japan and the Aokigahara forest, also known as the ‘suicide forest’ in Japan. 

The video, titled “We found a dead body in the Japanese Suicide Forest…” hit 6.3 million views within 24 hours of being uploaded, and garnered all types of attention from around the globe, though it was for all the wrong reasons. Unfortunately, this was not an example of the use of clickbait. In the video, he encounters a body hanging in the forest and jokingly says, “Yo, are you alive?” along with other insensitive comments. Not only did he film the corpse, but his and his group’s reactions were also downright disrespectful. Instead of not including the clip in his video, Paul continued to record the corpse and continued with his disrespectful antics. 

Many people were angered by what he did, taking to social media platforms to express their feelings. Viewers felt that he was disrespectful, inconsiderate, and possibly triggering. He uploaded the video for clout, gaining more views and growing his channel. On January 9th, 2018, he issued an apology for his actions. 

He apologizes to the internet and claims how he did it because he thought he “could make a positive ripple on the internet” referring to his “fun vlogs”. His statement said, “I did it because I thought I could make a positive ripple on the internet, not cause a monsoon of negativity. That’s never the intention. I intended to raise awareness for suicide and suicide prevention.” However, recording and making fun of a dead body and uploading it to YouTube for the whole world to see is not the way to raise awareness for suicide prevention. His apology was seen as full of excuses and weak, which only triggered more controversy instead of helping his case. 

This situation is a prime example of the lengths not only Paul but also YouTubers, in general, are willing to go to in exchange for fame and money. The negative backlash Paul received only made people talk about him more. Despite it being in a bad light, the more people talk about him, watch his videos or engage with his content, the more money he makes. Paul knew what he filmed was wrong, and he should have been mature enough to know that he was not ‘promoting suicide prevention,’ but he uploaded the video anyway. His integrity was compromised that day, and his reputation was forever tainted. Still, it showed how far YouTubers would be willing to compromise their integrity and morals for views and the monetization of his content. 

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