People attend a "giveaway" event announced by popular live streamer Kai Cenat that grew chaotic at Union Square and the surrounding streets in New York City, U.S. August 4, 2023. REUTERS/David 'Dee' Delgado
(New York, NY) – Becoming a provocateur has never been easier in the digital age. Video platforms like Twitch allow users to livestream, and social media algorithms disseminate the clips in a symbiotic, clout-chasing tango. Social media also provides the site for surrounding discourse to further engage with the content, and access to in-group knowledge that would previously take a decent amount of background research. It also works in favor for creators to plot their next stunt: flyers for protests let guys like Jake Lang know where to pull up with a goat, politicians holding rallies are added to Crackhead Barney’s calendar. These names may not be the most recognizable, but their faces dominate feeds.
Who Is Chud The Builder?
Chud The Builder is one of those streamers facing major trouble in court. His real name is Dalton Eatherly – it is worth noting that chud is internet slang for a know-nothing idiot. Eatherly, 28, is facing attempted murder charges after shooting a black disabled veteran during one of his streams. Eatherly is known for rage-baiting content, mostly along racial lines. Basically, he has a history of shouting the n-word at black people to get a rise out of them for his videos. On May 13th, Eatherly got into a confrontation with a black man outside a Tennessee courthouse, who eventually put Eatherly in a chokehold according to surveillance footage. Eatherly fired his gun at the man, who ended up surviving with shots to the stomach and shoulder.
This past week saw a few developments in Chud’s case. For one, he is not going to be able to use crowdfunding to settle his bond. A judge ruled that the streamer cannot receive any financial help from fans. His bond was also slightly reduced from $1.25 million to a flat million. He is charged with attempted criminal homicide, employing a firearm during a dangerous felony, aggravated assault, and reckless endangerment with a deadly weapon
Clavicular v Alligator
If you still have not heard of Clavicular and his cult of “looksmaxxers”, consider yourself lucky. Clavicular is a streamer known for his extreme dedication to his looks. His real name is Braden Peters, and he is so driven to achieve his apex level of attractiveness that he has gone as far as smashing his facial bones with a hammer in an effort to emphasize his features.
During a stream in the Florida Everglades on March 26, Peters was seen shooting a reportedly dead alligator. Peters, 20, pleaded no contest on May 15 to charges of unlawfully discharging a firearm in public. He was sentenced to six months of probation and must complete 20 hours of community service. The worst part for poor old Clav was probably getting brutally mogged by the mega-Chad judge presiding over the case (in English: many online were saying the judge was arguably more handsome than Clavicular – whose vanity knows no bounds). Also, I am sure readers would be delighted to know that the influencers known as “Baby Alien” and “Cuban Tarzan” are going to avoid jail time in the incident.
Kai Cenat’s City Chaos
It was only a few years back when New York dealt with a streamer tearing up the city. There is an entire Wikipedia page for the mayhem that went down at Union Square Park in August 2023. Popular streamer Kai Cenat, known for his celebrity cameos and marathon streaming events, promised to give away new PlayStation 5 consoles to some lucky fans. Cops estimate around 6,000 rowdy teens took over lower Manhattan streets, climbing on vehicles including Cenat’s SUV. Cenat, 24, was originally charged with riot and unlawful assembly, however charges were dropped after a public apology and $50,000 restitution payment.
Johnny Somali’s Sentence to South Korean Jail
The issues these influencers cause are not just domestic, they take their stunts international. American Youtuber & TikToker Johnny Somali had a wild two year run that began with trespassing charges in Japan, then getting detained in Jerusalem, but just recently all that culminated with a six month sentence to prison in South Korea. In October 2024, Somali filmed himself kissing and giving a lap dance to a statue memorializing so-called “comfort women”, South Korean women forced into sex slavery by the Japanese army. Somali, whose real name is Ramsey Khalid Ismael, later apologized and claimed he did not know the meaning of the statue. Ismael, 24, has filed an appeal but so have prosecutors who are seeking a harsher sentence.
You can see more and more of these provocateurs are popping up; it’s saturating the market. Online it’s go big or go home. If these streamers want to make it, they have to fully commit to the bit. Several times over now, we have seen what happens when those streamers go too far and find themselves facing criminal charges for their silly little content. Is it just par for the course in an algorithmic landscape that rewards the most outrageous, or is there something deeper going on in the minds of these creators?
