YouTube sensation Logan Paul (brother of Jake, no relation to Ron) has received some intense criticism this week for posting a video of a dead body in Aokigahara, Japan’s infamous “suicide forest.” Celebrities have called him out, and he’s already taken down the video (“WE FOUND A DEAD BODY!!! **emotional*”) and issued an apology. Meanwhile, Reddit is celebrating and mocking Paul’s career-threatening misstep.
Reddit‘s meme communities, particularly r/dankmemes, aren’t known for their sensitivity when it comes to suicide. Jokes about the topic are common, and posters seem unfazed by them. Paul’s video didn’t exactly violate their sense of ethics and good taste. It’s more that memers already hated him, and his unbelievable bad judgment this week was a gift to them.
Here are some of the best Logan Paul memes mocking him for failing to realize how showing a suicide victim on YouTube would go over. A lot of them just use the exploitable image of Paul’s shocked face alongside other examples of suicide or mass death.
Warning: Some of the memes below may be considered graphic or triggering.
Remember, though, that there are hundreds of thousands (maybe millions?) of subscribers who will follow Logan Paul and his brother Jake no matter what they do.
https://twitter.com/PhillyD/status/948022027956371456
Team 10 freestyle at Dachau!
134 million views
12450000 👍300000👎Load comments
lol all the people saying this is disrespectful acting like they knew anyone in the halacoast foh
cr8zyminecraft2004
5000000 👍— Lead Actor from Pixar’s Sodas (@ByYourLogic) January 2, 2018
When Mic interviewed a swarm of 10- to 14-year-old fans outside Jake Paul’s L.A. “Team 10” house last July, shortly after he made the news by disturbing his neighbors and setting his furniture on fire in his pool, several said there was literally nothing Paul could do to lose their support.
“I don’t know if there’s anything he could do,” a 14-year-old girl said. “Maybe kill someone. If he vlogged it, it would be entertaining, though.”
This is hardly the first time Paul has been called out for being a bad influence on his preteen fans. When he co-opted a Flobots song and changed the lyrics to “I can ride your girl with no handlebars,” Flobots MC Jonny Five admonished him for misogyny and objectification.
But YouTube stars have such young and loyal followings, a little hiccup with a dead body—which Logan Paul described in his apology as the first mistake he’s ever made—is hardly a career-ender. A lot of people on Reddit would sure like it to be, though.
For more information about suicide prevention or to speak with someone confidentially, contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (U.S.) or Samaritans (U.K.).
