One of YouTube’s biggest stars has been accused of trivialising rape amid pressure for firms to distance themselves from the online sensation.
Olajide Olatunji, better known as KSI, whose YouTube channel has more than 10.2m subscribers, has been criticised by a coalition of women’s groups for denigrating victims of sexual violence and propagating misogynistic views of women by calling them “sluts”.
Days after the publication of KSI’s debut book, I Am A Bellend, the women’s groups are calling for YouTube to remove the 22-year-old’s “rape face” videos. The videos show the star in a variety of settings, turning to camera with a menacing expression and making sexually suggestive gestures.
In another YouTube video, published in August 2014, KSI asks a Page 3 model about her sex life, while repeatedly calling her a slut in the voiceover.
Three years ago KSI was banned from attending Eurogamer Expo, the UK’s biggest video games showcase, as a consequence of his sexually inappropriate behaviour towards women.
KSI’s YouTube channel is the third most subscribed-to, and in Britain with 3m more followers than Ed Sheeran’s. His book was published on 24 September and debuted at No 23 in the UK charts.
Sarah Green, of the coalition End Violence Against Women, said: “Trivialising and minimising rape contributes to a culture where rape is not taken seriously, and where survivors of rape are told that what happened to them doesn’t matter. YouTube, KSI’s advertisers and his publisher and other partners should consider whether they want to be associated with that kind of content.”
A spokesman for KSI said the star had removed all offensive material from his YouTube channel two years ago, explaining that he had made a “mistake as a teenager” and had previously apologised for it.
The row echoes criticism of Dapper Laughs, whose ITV show was pulled last November after he was filmed making a joke about rape. Dapper – real name Daniel O’Reilly – also made his name as a YouTube sensation before footage appeared of him saying to an audience member that she was “gagging for a rape”.
A spokesman for KSI said: “He has refrained from referencing, responding to or using the term you mention [rape face] for almost two years. He does not create or support any such montages referred to. This incident was in the past and he has acknowledged it was a mistake. It doesn’t reflect who he is or what he believes in.”
YouTube did not respond to requests for a comment.
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