For Millennials. By Millennials.
After almost 16 months, Shane Dawson returned to YouTube this year. However, things are not looking good for him. Recently, his followers noticed that he deleted videos worth 343 million views from YouTube. Previously, he faced much backlash when fans noticed problematic content on his channel. From making racist jokes to pedophilia, he was accused of all. Similarly, Jaden Smith called him out when he made inappropriate remarks about Willow Smith. This led to YouTube demonetizing his channels and him stepping away from creating.
Despite being a successful YouTuber, Shane Dawson could not avoid controversies.
He began his career at the mere age of 19. By 2010, he had almost half a billion views on YouTube. However, no amount of money or success could save Shane Dawson from getting canceled. In 2020, many followers dug up his old problematic videos and bashed him for it. According to them, Shane Dawson used N-word and other racist slurs. At the same time, he used blackface to portray Wendy Williams and Chris Brown. Similarly, an old audio snippet from a podcast, Shane and Friends, emerged, which worsened matters. According to it, Shane Dawson joked about sexually abusing his cat.
After that, he came under fire when he objectified Willow Smith, who was underage then.
In an old video, Shane Dawson is moaning while Willow Smith’s song, Whip My Hair, is playing in the background. At the time, Willow was just 11 years old. This led to her mother and brother calling out to Shane. In a tweet, Jaden Smith wrote:
“SHANE DAWSON I AM DISGUSTED BY YOU. YOU SEXUALIZING AN 11 YEAR OLD GIRL WHO HAPPENS TO BE MY SISTER!!!!!! IS THE FURTHEST THING FROM FUNNY AND NOT OKAY IN THE SLIGHTEST BIT.”
Meanwhile, Jada Smith wrote that she was done with his excuses.
Recently, Shane Dawson deleted a significant chunk of his YouTube videos.
After the backlash he received, Shane Dawson took a hiatus from YouTube for 16 months. In a video titled Taking Accountability, he addressed all the accusations. While talking about them, he accepted that he mostly used racist slurs and jokes for his views. At the same time, he apologized for his past behavior and wanted to start again. A few days back, many of his subscribers noticed that Shane Dawson had removed many of his old videos. These videos had 343 million views. However, he had to remove the problematic content to begin again.
Although Dawson is trying to make a comeback, it cannot be said with certainty that he will be successful. With every passing day, people tend to move forward and find some other influencer to follow.
