Streaming site Twitch is embroiled in controversy over creators’ content about its handling of Israel and Palestine
New York
CNN
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Creators on Twitch have waded into controversy over Israel's war in Gaza in recent months, spooking advertisers and brands who have pulled away or otherwise admonished the Amazon-owned livestreaming platform.
JPMorgan Chase pulled out of Twitch advertising in the last couple of months, a source said, though it was part of a broader strategy of brand safety and worries about what content was showing up near their ads. Antisemitism allegations went into those considerations.
Chevron, a sponsor of Twitch's semi-annual convention, TwitchCon, expressed disappointment with Twitch in a statement to CNN after controversial comments were made during a TwitchCon panel of Middle Eastern streamers.
At least two other companies, AT&T and Dunkin' Donuts, also pulled out of advertising on the platform, according to Bloomberg. Twitch told CNN it does not comment on advertisers.
The controversy at Twitch underscores how hard it is to deal with sensitive political topics that have become commonly discussed and shared on social media.
"There is no place on Twitch for racism, hatred, or harassment of any kind, including antisemitism and Islamophobia," Twitch CEO Dan Clancy wrote in a November blog post, adding that Twitch works "hard to ensure that our community is a safe place."
Hasan Piker, who goes by HasanAbi to his 2.8 million Twitch subscribers, has been described as the left's Joe Rogan.
Rep. Ritchie Torres of New York wrote a letter to Twitch last month "concerning antisemitic and anti-American propaganda emanating from Hasan Piker, one of Twitch's largest online streamers."
In the letter, Torres wrote: "Mr. Piker has demonized Orthodox Jews as ‘inbred' and has dehumanized a Jewish man as a ‘bloodthirsty pig dog.'" Piker told NBC News last month that the videos cited in the letter were taken out of context and he was criticizing the Israeli government, not Jewish people.
"I've been an outspoken advocate for Palestinian emancipation for the past 10 years, professionally in my media career," he said in an interview with Wired in August. When asked about antisemitic allegations in an interview with CNN, he said: "Of course not. The real problem here is that I'm anti-Zionist. The real problem here is that I'm extremely critical of Israel."
A campaign to pressure advertisers to pull out of Twitch was led by supporters of Dan "DanCantStream" Saltman and people in spaces linked to Steven "Destiny" Bonnell.Saltman has criticized and targeted Piker, and Saltman told DigiDay his campaign's group had reached out to over 100 advertisers already.
In a response to a Bloomberg journalist's questions that Saltman posted online, he said "The goal of our campaign is simple: The CEO, Dan Clancy stepping down." He also said "My ban from Twitch was ceremonial at best, I was in the process of deleting my account when the ban went into place."
Both have been suspended from Twitch for different reasons; Saltman for harassment rules and Destiny for hateful conduct. Many of their fans online on forums such as Reddit want them reinstated.
Saltman claims his ban was likely to prevent him from speaking to other streamers about issues on the platform.
"When a major media company such as Twitch encourages, promotes and protects virulent antisemitism on its platform, it's prudent for advertisers to be aware of what spaces they are supporting," Saltman said in the letter.
Controversy over streamers
Comments made at the "Ayyrabs Podcast" panel, hosted by Twitch partner and streamer Frogan at TwitchCon, are at the center of the controversy. The in-person event is dedicated to the platform, its creators and users and took place in September.
Twitch suspended those panelists, as well as separately an account for user Asmongold, after he made racist remarks about Palestinians. It was not specified to CNN how long each suspension was.
At the panel, when the panelists were ranking how "Arab" other streamers were, the lowest category on the board was "Loves Sabra." Sabra, a hummus brand that was previously partially owned by Israeli food company The Strauss Group, was fully acquired by PepsiCo in November. Sabra is often part of pro-Palestinian boycotts.
The background of the panel featured logos from Chevron, Samsung and Capcom.
In a statement to CNN, Chevron said the "derogatory comments" made on stage were "deeply hurtful" and expressed disappointment in Twitch organizers.
"As an event sponsor, Chevron relied on conference organizers to exercise stringent oversight of presentations and content, and we are disappointed that such divisive rhetoric was allowed onstage," a spokesperson said Wednesday. The company said it reviews its sponsorships and advertisements "periodically."
A view of the opening ceremony stage at TwitchCon 2024 San Diego on September 20, 2024 in San Diego, California.
Robin L Marshall/Getty Images
In October, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), a pro-Israel and Jewish advocacy group that works to combat anti-Semitism, said it spoke with Twitch staff a month after TwitchCon.
"Twitch must learn from this situation and improve how they address antisemitism and hate on their platform, which is an ongoing and significant challenge," the ADL said in a statement on X. The ADL said it was not in touch with any advertisers.
One online commentator, Ethan Klein, who was featured on the board as someone who "Loves Sabra," posted in a video alleging that the messaging of the panel was "kinda Arab good, Jew bad."
On X, Frogan said she was banned from Twitch for 30 days, posting a screengrab citing "targeted hateful conduct."
She also said the "habibi pass" list was a "meme tier list," essentially equating it to an online joke in a format that's popular online. ("Habibi" is Arabic for beloved; a "habibi pass" means someone who can use the word in line with its meaning.)
"The whole basis of my podcast ayyrabs with capri and raff is that we are all arabs from different religious backgrounds - i am muslim, capri is christian, and raff is jewish," she said, referring to the suspended hosts of the podcast who were also part of the panel.
In October, Frogan posted that her suspension was longer than user Asmongold, whose real name is Zack Hoyt. His main channel on Twitch is popular with 3.6 million followers. While Frogan's comments, which were made with sponsors clearly displayed in the backdrop behind her, caused a 30 day ban, she said Hoyt's tirade against Palestinians got two weeks. Twitch did not confirm the lengths of the suspensions.
Earlier this year, he called the victims of Israel's military campaign, who number at least 44,502 according to the local health ministry, "terrible people" adding that they come from an "inferior culture."
"If you want to consider it genocide as a systematic killing of a group of people, they have genocide built into Sharia law right now," Asmongold said in the viral clip. "So no, I'm not going to cry a f**king river when people who have genocide that's baked into their laws are getting genocided. I don't give a f**k. They're terrible people. It's not even a question. It's crazy that people don't see it that way. They'd be doing the same thing."
Asmongold later posted an apology on X in October, saying "Looking back on it, I was way too much of an a**hole about the Palestine thing. My bad." In a follow-up video on YouTube, he said he "deserved" the repercussions and called his comments "disgusting."
Updating its policy
Twitch said it enforces its policies evenly.
"Any and all content on Twitch must abide by our Community Guidelines, and we apply these rules objectively, to all of our creators. When we find content that breaks those rules, we take enforcement action," the company said in a statement Wednesday.
In November, Twitch updated its hateful content policy to include the term "Zionist" when using it "to attack or demean another individual or group of people on the basis of their background or religious belief."
The company acknowledged that Zionism refers to a political movement, and using the term in that context, whether in support or not, does not violate the policy.
That same month, Twitch also requested streamers to use a new label, "Politics and Sensitive Social Issues," on topics relating to those issues. Those labels help users choose what they want to consume on the site, and also for brands to have more control over where their ads appear, Twitch said.
"Our goal isn't to stifle conversation about or criticism of an institution or ideology, but to prevent coded hate directed at individuals and groups of people," the company said in the policy.
