YouTube sensation PewDiePie is sorry for his anti-Semitic videos — sort of.
Three days after being dropped by Disney, the internet sensation took to his YouTube channel to apologize while blaming the media. PewDiePie, whose real name is Felix Kjellberg, has been under fire for posting videos featuring either anti-Semitic jokes or images related to Nazis, including a banner that said, “Death to all Jews.”
“I just want to reiterate that my intention was to show how stupid the website is and how far you could push it,” he said in the video Thursday. “I’m sorry for the words that I used as I know they offended people.”
Kjellberg then pivoted to go on a tirade about the media in the 11-minute video.
The 27-year-old Swede mostly directed his ire at the Wall Street Journal, which published a report Monday about the controversial videos, as well as Disney’s decision to cut ties with him. Disney’s Maker Studios reportedly had a multimillion-dollar deal with Kjellberg.
“It was an attack toward me, to try and discredit me, to try and decrease my influence and my economic worth. These three gentleman from [Wall Street Journal] that did this are also very proud of this,” he said.
He went on to give the journalists a middle finger, telling them to “try again, mother-f–kers.”
“Personally, I think they are the ones normalizing hatred because there is actual hatred out there,” he said. “Instead of celebrating my show getting canceled, why don’t we focus on that instead.”
With 53 million subscribers, Kjellberg is often referred to as one of YouTube’s top stars, earning an estimated $14.5 million a year. His videos are popular for their crass humor.
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