In recent days, two of the biggest German gaming streamers on Twitch have dealt with the Corona vaccine and opponents of this vaccine. The streamer Trymacs wished a Happy New Year to all vaccinated people in a New Year’s tweet. MontanaBlack criticized an anti-vaxxer during his stream. One video can still be found online – the other one is no longer available.
What did MontanaBlack say earlier? MontanaBlack’s opinion on the topic of Corona fluctuates. Like many Germans over the past two years, the 33-year-old apparently went through various phases of opinion formation:
- At the end of 2020, he criticized details of the lockdown at that time. He was upset that flower shops in his hometown Buxtehude had to close, while flower sales in supermarkets continued. He was bothered that he could no longer go to his favorite restaurant and couldn’t travel freely.
- On the other hand, MontanaBlack demanded at the end of 2020 a “harsh lockdown, dude, – 4 or 5 weeks of everything shutdown”. Germany was still too lenient regarding the measures.
- As the website Watson reports, he then held the opinion that he did not want to be forced to get vaccinated. Even in September 2021, he told fans he was not vaccinated (via watson).
MontanaBlack from vaccine skeptic to triple vaccinated
What does he say now? On December 24, MontanaBlack stated, according to Watson, in a contribution from SternTV: He and his family are double vaccinated and boosted. However, he said he remains neutral on the topic.
He also declined to participate in a “government campaign” even though he was offered a five-figure sum in euros, allegedly €50,000.
In a live stream on Twitch, he recently criticized an anti-vaxxer:
If you are anyone who believes that you are getting a chip implanted with the vaccine, with which the state monitors you, then just get lost and please don’t come back. No one will miss you.
MontanaBlack
He continued, saying he did not want to insult anyone who cannot get vaccinated for health reasons. He also understands if someone is afraid of needles. But anti-vaxxers are “just garbage”; they should not continue to support him and should stop watching his streams.
In December, he had already stated that he was fed up with “any idiotic conspiracy theorists ruining the next 5 years of his life” because Corona is expected to last that long.
What are the reactions? On Twitter, it seems MontanaBlack has alienated some of his followers:
- One user said he was “immensely disappointed in MontanaBlack” – saying he would “spit in the faces of his viewers and people”.
- Another user talked about “division and incitement against the unvaccinated”.
- However, some users support MontanaBlack. They say: “Just get vaccinated and stop whining.”
MontanaBlack seems to distance himself from the issue
This stands out in MontanaBlack’s statements:
- Research shows that while there were Twitch clips from Sunday in which MontanaBlack criticized anti-vaxxers, they are now all no longer accessible. They seem to be the only current clips that are no longer accessible.
- The YouTube channels that analyze MontanaBlack’s streams and that MontanaBlack controls do not address this issue.
- Additionally, there are no current tweets from MontanaBlack regarding the topic of Corona.
It is apparently a topic on which MontanaBlack does not want to publicly position himself as clearly as others. This also fits with the decision not to participate in a vaccination campaign by the federal government.
Trymacs celebrates criticism of anti-vaxxers, enjoys provocation
What did Trymacs do? On January 1, streamer Trymacs created a tweet: “I wish all vaccinated people a Happy New Year!”
These are the reactions:
For the most part, there is great approval for the tweet. However, there is also criticism.
- One user says vaccinated people are “ultra stupid people”. Because there is no country where a high vaccination rate led to lower incidence.
- Another user accuses Trymacs of “discriminating against the unvaccinated”. Racism would upset everyone, but discrimination against the unvaccinated is okay. This shows “how far we have come” – Trymacs needs to “show some humanity”.
- The Twitch streamer Tanzverbot collects likes with the tweet, wishing “all people” a Happy New Year.
Trymacs enjoys the provocation
This was the idea behind it: As Trymacs explained in a YouTube video, it was a deliberate action to “trigger anti-vaxxers and conspiracy theorists”.
He was pleased in a video that his tweet was shared in Telegram groups and discussed extensively.
However, he feels sorry for people who cannot get vaccinated for health reasons – he did not intend to provoke them with his tweet, but rather “anti-vaxxers and conspiracy theorists”.
This stands out in the statement: Trymacs apparently thoroughly enjoys the backlash and revels in the excitement in a large YouTube video.
This is pretty much the opposite of how MontanaBlack handles the issue.
Politics discovers gaming influencers – But there are still some issues
This is what it’s about: An interesting detail of the discussion is that politics apparently wanted to “buy” a statement from MontanaBlack with the invitation to the vaccination campaign. It has also been recognized in Berlin how much influence the gaming streamer has on the German-speaking youth.
A Twitter user said after the Bundestag election that the FDP is only so strong with young people because they follow liberal millionaires on Twitch who have criticized the Greens and are commenting for their own wallets. He meant, among others, MontanaBlack and Trymacs (via twitter).
However, MontanaBlack allegedly did not want to be co-opted for a government campaign “Pro Vaccination” despite a lot of money. He has probably done well, as the influencer campaign was subsequently criticized as “bland” and “not helpful” (via wuv).
It is clear that there are different approaches among the major German gaming influencers on Twitch regarding their stance on the issue of “anti-vaxxers”:
- MontanaBlack appears to view the Corona situation with nuance, strives to remain “neutral” – does not want to bend himself and deliberately does not want to upset fans by engaging too offensively in the topic.
- Trymacs, on the other hand, seems to have no problem making an aggressive statement about it – and enjoys the reactions.
Twitch: The 5 currently biggest German streamers by active viewers
