Pro Fortnite Canned For Making Ugly Comments
Fortnite has taken the world by storm. Last month we told you how over 40 million folks have played the game. With its popularity, we are seeing more streamers and pro players surface. One particular pro player and streamer found himself in some hot water when he made some particularly disturbing comments on a recent stream.
Jordan “Scubby” Selleck who is a partnered Twitch streamer and, formerly, a member of the HavoK Esports team, hosted a Fortnite live stream. During the stream, the topic of another Twitch streamer having suicidal thoughts came up. “Scubby” did not hold back and told is viewers what he really thought about suicidal people. Selleck stated:
“So, to answer your question, if somebody that I was responsible for started threatening that they were gonna commit suicide, I would dare them to do it, and then I would never talk to them again.”
He also remarked that he considered anxiety “fake”. As a matter of fact, he said this multiple times. Definitely not the kind of person you would want your children watching…
You can watch his response HERE.
As a result of his comments, HavoK Esports said that they had decided to “part ways with Scubby,” then linked to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.
Selleck has been off the grid since the stream. He has not been on Twitch nor Twitter since the stream.
As Kotaku indicated as a partnered streamer, Scubby enjoys several privileges, including a share of revenue from ads and subscribers. Last December, a Twitch rep told Kotaku that the service was looking to improve how they evaluate suicide threats sent to streamers from fans, and that the company’s current goal was to “stop promotion of content that can lead to suicide or self harm, which includes mitigating the risk of an individual being exposed to negative encouragement.” It’s hard to see how “I would dare them to do it” doesn’t fall under “negative encouragement.”
What are your thoughts? Does the punishment suit the crime? Tell us!