Daniel “Keemstar” Keem is an important voice in gaming with 2.7 million followers on Twitter. He engages with the discussion about YouTuber IShowSpeed: He was banned from Valorant for vile sexist and racist insults. For Keemstar, such outbursts aren’t real, as video games aren’t real either. That’s just trash talk, it comes with the territory.
This is the situation:
- E-sport journalist Jake Luckey shared a clip from Valorant in which YouTuber IShowSpeed (19) had an outburst and insulted a female player in the worst sexist manner. He yelled at her to get out of the game and do the dishes for her husband.
- Riot subsequently banned the YouTuber from all games. A representative from YouTube Gaming stated they are looking closer into the case. The career end of the very successful YouTube star is at stake. The YouTuber himself admitted that his behavior in the clip was wrong. But he is very young and still developing.
- A controversy has now erupted surrounding this incident. Influential content creator Keemstar has intervened: He believes the action against IShowSpeed is racially motivated and defends the black content creator. It’s just trash talk, after all.
This isn’t real – just like the guns in video games
This is what Keemstar says: In a video comment on Twitter, Keemstar defends the young IShowSpeed (via twitter):
What is going on in the world we live in? You have this e-sports reporter who is attacking Speed for trash talk in a game. First of all: The boy is a kid! And what is being said is simply not real. These are not real statements. This is trash talk in a video game. If they were to stand face to face in real life, they would never say such things to each other. […]
Things said in a fantasy video game are simply not real. You know what else isn’t real? The guns! The guns in the game are not real weapons.
KeemStar
Keemstar sees a racial motivation behind the discussion about IShowSpeed. The white e-sports journalist attacked the biggest black streamer on YouTube Gaming while downplaying the misbehavior of other white influencers in the past.
Discussion about whether one can change or always remains the same
What is the reaction to this? The biggest streamer on Twitch, xQc, is known for his outbursts and sexist comments towards women. He is also a well-known trash talker. He responded directly to Keemstar.
xQc says that such sexist remarks are “not trash talk at all.” And it is quite audacious to play the racism card while simply overlooking sexism.
Keemstar is just trying to attract attention by catering to hate against women.
However, for Keemstar, it is a bonanza that xQc is now attacking him. He shows numerous examples of when xQc has behaved badly in the past: For instance, xQc was banned from the Overwatch League in 2018 for homophobic comments.
xQc responds: That’s a great example. These old stories show (via twitter):
- some people, like xQc himself, can change radically in 3, 4 years. They can get better
- other people, like Keemstar, wouldn’t change a bit even in 10, 15 years.
Are there other perspectives?? Yes, the well-known MMORPG streamer Amsongold addresses the ban of IShowSpeed. He believes it is not a solution to simply ban people who misbehave, just to show that there are consequences for misconduct. That helps no one.
It would be better if people acknowledged their mistakes, promised to change, and actually followed through. People should also realize what nonsense they themselves did when they were 17 or 19 – depending on what age one estimates IShowSpeed to be.
Keemstar, from trash talker to drama specialist
Who is Keemstar and what role does he play? Keemstar came to prominence in 2009 when he demonstrated horrible trash talk in a YouTube video, earning a reputation as a “trash talker.”
The 40-year-old Keemstar is now a podcaster, streamer, and YouTuber. He is known for addressing controversial topics, taking contrarian positions, and generating a lot of attention.
With his show “DramaAlert,” he is simultaneously active in a journalistic role: He “comments on drama,” while also stirring up those very topics he reports on with harsh comments. Thus, he has a very controversial role in the influencer scene.
Since most influencers are in their 20s, while he himself is already 40, Keemstar constantly hears from younger people that he is becoming “old and irrelevant” and that he should behave more appropriately for his age.
Keemstar has become the figure on Twitter who people reach out to when they catch any kind of “villain” doing something wrong. They hope that Keemstar will then expose them on his internet gallows.
Keemstar was involved in an ugly campaign against Twitch streamer Pokimane.
Big Twitch streamer receives a lot of hate and is now taking a break
