What to Know About the Allegations Against MrBeast and His Company

As a woman who has navigated the complexities of online communities and social media platforms, I find myself deeply troubled by the recent allegations against Ava Tyson and Jimmy Donaldson, better known as MrBeast.

For several years, Jimmy Donaldson, famously known as MrBeast online, has been YouTube’s most illustrious figure. Boasting a whopping 308 million subscribers on his primary channel, and an additional 152 million across his four other channels, he currently ranks as the most subscribed YouTuber on the platform. This immense popularity has propelled him to reportedly earn approximately $82 million from June 2022 to June 2023, according to Forbes.

Donaldson, who started on YouTube back in 2012, has built an extensive catalog of entertaining content that garners hundreds of millions of views. His videos frequently involve testing people’s boundaries for substantial monetary rewards. Moreover, he is well-recognized for his charitable endeavors, such as funding cataract surgeries for over 1,000 individuals to restore their vision and volunteering in underprivileged communities.

This level of fame has brought scrutiny and criticism along with wealth and opportunity. Some critics have said that offering vulnerable people cash in exchange for demanding physical or mental challenges is ethically murky. Others have criticized him for using his good deeds as “content” off of which he profits. And in recent months, Donaldson and those in his orbit have been at the center of multiple different controversies. In July, his friend and former collaborator, Ava Kris Tyson, was accused of having inappropriate conversations with minors. In August, a former MrBeast employee accused Tyson of sexually assaulting her. (Tyson has denied all allegations.) Also this summer, some participants in Donaldson’s Amazon competition show Beast Games alleged that they had been subjected to unsafe working conditions. In a separate incident online in late July, old videos of Donaldson making racially insensitive jokes resurfaced, prompting an apology from the YouTuber.

In the report obtained by TIME, Donaldson’s representatives disclosed that they had engaged a legal team to examine accusations leveled against Tyson. The internal memo from Donaldson requested a comprehensive evaluation of the work environment within “Team Beast” and an investigation into claims of unacceptable conduct within the company. Additionally, it was revealed that Donaldson intended to recruit a Chief Human Resources Officer, Chief Financial Officer, and General Counsel, as well as institute firm-wide workshops focusing on sensitivity and appropriate behavior.

Here is everything to know about the recent controversies surrounding MrBeast. 

Beast Games participants allege unsafe working conditions

In March, it became known that Donaldson had struck a deal with Amazon MGM to create a competition series. Although specifics about the show’s production were limited, the announcement disclosed that an impressive 1,000 competitors would be battling for a record-breaking $5 million grand prize—the largest in television history.

The filming for the competition started in Las Vegas around mid-July. Later, some of the eliminated participants shared their experiences didn’t match their initial expectations. In a video obtained by TIME, Donaldson clarified that there were actually 2,000 contestants, contrary to the initially reported figure of 1,000. In the video, he stated, “I’m not sure if I mentioned this publicly, but there are 2,000 contestants.” As per the New York Times, the age range of the participants spanned from Gen Z to 82 years old.

Contestants learned that the initial phase of eliminations was for MrBeast’s YouTube channel, with approximately 1,000 participants being excluded. The remaining competitors then faced off in the Amazon show. To whittle down the initial group, contestants engaged in various challenges such as moving a heavy stone using a pulley system and playing a game of capture the flag.

Two ousted competitors shared their unfavorable experiences with TIME. Jenae Reidy, who was part of the team that got eliminated after just one day, described the production as chaotic, stating it was difficult to secure enough sleep, nutrition, hydration, and medication. Dinner for her consisted of a hard-boiled egg, two slices of cucumber, a small piece of celery, two carrot sticks, and a quarter cup of plain oatmeal. Water, Reidy mentioned, was not easily accessible as per the contestants’ requests. Instead, they were provided with cans of Liquid Death (a water and iced tea company) and Feastables (MrBeast’s snack brand), which they used for sponsored content and consumed the chocolate bars as snacks. After their first night, the competitors slept in sleeping bags on the field in the center of the stadium.

As a passionate moviegoer sharing my insights with you, I can tell you firsthand that acquiring the medication supplied by the contestants proved quite challenging during production. Both Reidy and an unidentified contestant revealed this information to TIME. They claimed that the staff were disorganized, and the unnamed contestant even shared they had to wait over two hours just to receive their medication.

The 2,000 contestants were divided into five teams of 400, and then competed to lift a 10,000-lb. boulder the fastest. They split themselves up into five teams by grabbing colored jerseys that were handed out by guards. A contestant who asked to remain anonymous says that there was such a rush to get colored jerseys for their team that the situation became like a “mosh pit.” “The people behind us were pushing and the people in front of us were trying to turn around and go, so they were squishing us,” the contestant says. “One girl started to have a panic attack, we were trying to keep each other up from falling, people were screaming. It was really crazy.”

In addition, the contestant claims that certain younger male participants formed partnerships with others of their age group, which gave them a significant edge over women and senior contestants, creating an unbalanced playing field. As reported by Reidy and an anonymous teammate who were on the same team, some team members stumbled and got entangled in the ropes. Both sources state that the rope wrapped around someone’s neck. “The production crew was urging those behind the fallen participants to keep pulling, but they didn’t comply,” Reidy recounted. “Instead, they chose to assist their fellow contestants who were trapped in the ropes, as they did not wish to cause harm.”

Based on reports from The New York Times, over a dozen individuals sustained injuries during the initial filming of the Beast Games show. One participant shared with the Times that she was left with bruises and bleeding, while the newspaper claims there were several trips to the hospital.

According to Reidy and an unidentified competitor, they, along with others from their team, were given a $1,000 compensation prize after being eliminated. However, the anonymous contestant felt suspicious about this offer right away. Upon reaching the backstage area, representatives from production requested the money back and promised that they would get their genuine payment later. As of now, they claim they have yet to receive it.

In a report by The New York Times, it’s mentioned that the second half of a shooting event is scheduled for Vancouver in early August. There has been chatter online about possible risky tasks. YouTuber Rosanna Pansino, known for her lifestyle channel with more than 14.5 million subscribers, shared on TikTok that the production crew union IATSE claimed that Donaldson requested a non-union crew specifically for his show, as stated in an email from an undisclosed Canadian branch of IATSE, which labeled the production as “unfair.”

“The union representative declined to provide comments regarding projects not affiliated with IATSE, as stated in an email sent to TIME.”

In an interview with the New York Times, a Donaldson spokesperson explained that their production encountered problems because of the CrowdStrike incident (a widespread computer issue affecting Microsoft Windows users), harsh weather conditions, and unforeseen logistical and communication challenges. They stated that the company has initiated a thorough review to gain insights from this experience.

Amazon MGM’s casting team, as well as representatives from YouTube, were contacted by TIME regarding the matter. However, we have yet to receive a response at this time.

A powerful creator with devoted fans

As a fervent admirer, I’ve been following the buzz surrounding the supposed unsafe conditions on the Beast Games production. This conversation ignited partly due to Pansino, who started disclosing participants’ ordeals on her TikTok in July. In 2021, Pansino participated in a video series with Donaldson called “Creator Games.” The third episode of this series, titled “Extreme $1,000,000 Hide and Seek,” brought together ten YouTube stars for a game of hide-and-seek, with the grand prize being $1,000,000. Pansino, who came in third place, alleged that the video was manipulated to make it seem like she performed worse than she truly did. During an episode on Trisha Paytas’ podcast “Just Trish,” Pansino explained that she delayed speaking out because she didn’t want to encounter backlash from MrBeast’s fanbase. When she eventually did, she claims the fans responded swiftly.

In an interview with TIME, Pansinso shared, “I encountered more threatening messages than I knew how to handle… I promised him that I would remove all content and issue apologies in hopes of putting a halt to these threats. I expressed my fear, not just for myself, but also for the safety of my family.” After complying with his demands, Pansinso stated that the majority of the threatening messages ceased.

Pansino claims that her YouTube followers failed to support her by neglecting to challenge the dominant content creator on the platform. “I believe no other major creators will voice their concerns about him due to fear of losing potential collaborative opportunities,” she explains, highlighting the value of such partnerships among creators. “They seem to be afraid of him too.” Since she’s openly discussed her encounters, she adds that contestants from Beast Games found it comfortable to share their production experiences with her.

Many of these individuals who are contacting her seem to believe that they lack a platform to express themselves, she notes. They aren’t prominent content producers. Instead, they’re apprehensive about Jimmy and his organization.

According to Pansino, she’s had experiences where collaborations with MrBeast didn’t turn out as anticipated. Lately, she claims he informed her about a company called Secret Sauce, which could post content on her Facebook page without her direct control. However, it was later discovered that Donaldson held a share in Secret Sauce and failed to inform Pansino or other creators associated with the company about this ownership. Kwebbelkop, another creator involved with Secret Sauce, declined to comment for this particular report.

According to Pansino, shortly after collaborating, the company Secret Sauce was closed down by its founder, Donaldson, because he obtained a deal with Jellysmack, a different social media management firm. This arrangement necessitated the closure of Secret Sauce. Subsequently, Pansino and the other creators were unable to use their Facebook accounts for several months. Neither Jellysmack nor Donaldson’s team have provided comments regarding Secret Sauce or Pansino’s assertions at the time this was written. TIME attempted to contact Jellysmack but did not receive an immediate response.

Ava Kris Tyson leaves the company after grooming allegations 

Last month, Ava Kris Tyson, Donaldson’s friend and collaborator, declared she was stepping away from all matters related to MrBeast. This decision followed accusations against her of grooming a minor. The allegation emerged from a video uploaded by YouTuber Prism42, who asserted they had proof that Tyson held inappropriate conversations with minors on Discord and other social networking platforms.

Tyson refuted the claims and expressed in a social media post that he doesn’t want these allegations to affect the hundreds of employees at MrBeast. That’s why he has temporarily stepped back. He wants to apologize for any past actions or remarks that may have caused pain or offense, unintentionally. With recent events in mind, it was decided mutually beneficial for him to permanently step away from all MrBeast-related activities and social media platforms to concentrate on his family and mental wellbeing.

Donaldson promptly tackled the accusations by publishing a statement on X, indicating that an in-depth investigation will be initiated.

“Over the past few days, I’ve learned about the severe accusations against Ava Tyson’s online actions, and I find them abhorrent and strongly condemn them. Meanwhile, I have been diligently working to engage an impartial third party for a comprehensive probe, so that I can gather all the necessary information.” (Written on July 24)

He added, “In light of this, I’ve swiftly disconnected Ava from our firm, my platform, and any links to MrBeast. I unequivocally distance myself from any inappropriate behaviors. I’ll give the independent investigators ample time to conduct a thorough probe, and I’ll act on their conclusions subsequently.”

On August 7th, Rolling Stone released an investigation featuring testimonies from three individuals, one of whom was mentioned in Prism42’s video, claiming they had inappropriate encounters with Tyson. One of the interviewees was a former moderator who worked on Tyson’s channel when he was 15. This individual stated that Tyson exploited him, manipulated their relationship, and engaged in highly inappropriate behavior towards him.

I used to admire a former moderator who, during the years 2017-2021, handed over approximately half a million messages from the Discord channel to Rolling Stone magazine. In these conversations, as reported by the publication, this individual made inappropriate jokes about their genitals, shared links to adult content websites, and would request to clear chats deemed controversial.

A person identified as Jess, who held the position of executive assistant to Tyson at Donaldson’s company for a year, also spoke with Rolling Stone. This individual, who is transgender, disclosed that Tyson confided in them about their own transition, which was later made public in April 2023. On July 27, Jess shared a series of posts detailing the alleged misconduct and asserted that Tyson had sexually assaulted them.

Jess expressed, “I’m someone who recently revealed my identity as a trans girl. A celebrity, who like me, is keeping their transition private, reached out to me. This connection, born from shared experiences and revelations, made it challenging for me to fully grasp the power dynamic… the level of fame she possesses had an impact on how much I admired her.”

After receiving an executive assistant position offer, Tyson invited Jess to move in with her. Jess explained that she had sexual encounters with Tyson, claiming she felt compelled due to the power dynamic between them as her superior. She added, “I was contemplating if I shouldn’t live with her or act differently, as it could significantly strain and awkwardly impact our relationship. It seemed like refusing or walking away would put my job at risk.” Ultimately, Jess chose to resign from the company.

Jess confides in TIME via a private message that she’s surprised Tyson is being probed, as her own experiences have been ignored during investigations by individuals who prefer to emphasize transphobic narratives instead. She shares that revealing her story left her exposed and believes it’s crucial for Donaldson and Tyson to address this issue publicly because she feels like she’s battling alone in this matter.

Time reached out to Tyson via email and Instagram DMs, but we haven’t received a response yet. Since her departure from MrBeast, she hasn’t made any public statements. Currently, Tyson is under investigation by McGuireWoods LLP, another party, who also did not respond to Time’s request for comment.

MrBeast’s offensive and racially insensitive language

At the end of July, Pansino posted some past videos featuring MrBeast making comments considered racially inappropriate and using a derogatory term towards the LGBTQ+ community. In one video, when someone mentioned they were selling a Black person, MrBeast replied that he would only pay around $300. Additionally, he was heard using a slur that is offensive to the LGBTQ+ community.

In response to the use of a homophobic slur mentioned in a TIME magazine article this year, MrBeast acknowledged his past mistakes as stemming from youthful ignorance, explaining that at the time, he wasn’t aware of the term’s meaning. His representatives also conveyed a similar sentiment, stating that during his teenage years, he often resorted to inappropriate language in an attempt to be humorous.

The spokesperson added, “Over time, he’s acknowledged his errors, understanding that greater influence brings a heightened need for sensitivity and mindfulness about the weight of words. Having made some inappropriate jokes and blunders during his youth, as a mature individual, he’s been dedicated to collaborating with the MrBeast community to foster positive change globally.”

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2024-08-13 22:13