YouTube released a statement to Twitter Tuesday in response to the disturbing ‘suicide forest’ video posted by vlogger Logan Paul (pictured)
YouTube released a statement to Twitter Tuesday in response to vlogger Logan Paul’s disturbing ‘suicide forest’ video.
The video sharing company was criticized for their silence since Paul posted the 15-minute clip showing what appeared to be a man hanging from a tree at Mount Fuji on December 31.
‘Many of you have been frustrated with our lack of communication recently. You’re right to be. You deserve to know what’s going on,’ the statement read.
‘Like many others, we were upset by the video that was shared last week.’
Youtube went on to condemn Paul’s irresponsible and careless behavior, while explaining their plans to take action.
‘Suicide is not a joke, nor should it ever be a driving force for views. As Anna Akana put it perfectly: ‘That body was a person someone loved. You do not walk into a suicide forest with a camera and claim mental health awareness’,’ the post read.
‘We expect more of the creators who build their community on YouTube, as we’re sure you do too… the channel violated our community guidelines, we acted accordingly, and we are looking at further consequences.
‘It’s taken us a long time to respond, but we’ve been listening to everything you’ve been saying.’
The video sharing company said in part: ‘Like many others, we were upset by the video that was shared last week’
YouTube star Paul (pictured left in the video) posted the 15 minute clip on New Year’s Eve that showed him and a few friends walking through a forest at the base of Japan’s Mount Fuji
The horrific video also shows a motionless man who is seemingly hanging from a tree
In conclusion: ‘We know that the actions of one creator can affect the entire community, so we’ll have more to share soon on steps we’re taking to ensure a video like this is never circulated again.’
In Paul’s video, titled ‘We found a dead body’, he is seen walking through the forest with two friends.
Paul zoomed his camera into the man’s body, who is seemingly dangling from the tree. DailyMail.com chose not to include this part of the clip in previous coverage.
The vlogger is heard shouting out to the lifeless man: ‘Yo, are you alive? Are you f**king with us?’
The vlogger is heard shouting out to the lifeless man: ‘Yo, are you alive? Are you f**king with us?’
Paul is shown zooming into the individual as he asks a friend to call the police
He then adds, before ordering for someone to call for help: ‘A lot of things going through my mind. This is a first for me.’
Paul is seen zooming in again on the individual, while explaining that his ‘hands are purple’ and he may have committed suicide just hours before.
Immediately after he posted the footage, he received was condemned by followers and others who unfortunately came across the insensitive footage.
Paul, who is said to be worth $14 million, also released an apology over the vlog, which he said shockingly was intended to be ‘fun’.
Paul released an apology on January 2, which was captioned, ‘so sorry’. He wrote on Twitter after: ‘taking time to reflect, no vlog for now, see you soon’
Paul said in his apology: ‘I didn’t do it for views. I get views. I did it because I thought I could make a positive ripple on the internet’
Paul said in the apology: ‘I’m so sorry about this… suicide is not a joke. Depression and mental illnesses are not a joke’.
On Twitter, the vlogger further said he had ‘never faced criticism like this before’ because he’s ‘never made a mistake like this before.
He claimed the video of he and his friends laughing was intended to raise awareness about suicide.
‘If this video saves just ONE life, it’ll be worth it,’ he said.
‘I was misguided by shock and awe, as portrayed in the video. I still am.’