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Did YouTube fire James Charles and David Dobrik? Fans speculate as stars penalized for alleged sexual misconduct

While Charles will not be hosting a second season of 'Instant Influencer' reality show, YouTube 'temporarily suspended monetization' on Dobrik
UPDATED MAR 28, 2021
While James Charles was replaced as host of 'Instant Influencer', YouTube demonetized David Dobrik (Getty Images)
While James Charles was replaced as host of 'Instant Influencer', YouTube demonetized David Dobrik (Getty Images)

Fans of beauty vlogger James Charles and YouTuber David Dobrik had mixed reactions after they discovered that both the social media influencers had been penalized following accusations of sexual misconduct. It led them to speculate if both of them had been fired by YouTube.

While the video-sharing platform announced in a statement to Variety on Friday, March 26, that Charles will not be hosting a second season of 'Instant Influencer' reality competition show, a rep for the platform also confirmed to the same outlet that YouTube has decided to demonetize David Dobrik. The news of Charles being removed from the show comes a month after he was accused of grooming a 16-year-old — an allegation he has denied. Meanwhile, Dobrik has been under fire for shooting and posting a video of a woman entering a bedroom after she was too drunk to consent. He has since removed the video. 

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James Charles attends Savage X Fenty Show Presented By Amazon Prime Video - Arrivals at Barclays Center on September 10, 2019, in Brooklyn, New York (Getty Images)

While many on the internet were heartbroken to find out that Charles and Dobrik were being penalized by YouTube, many of them thought that YouTube has made the right decision. "NOT JAMES CHARLES GETTING FIRED FROM HIS OWN SHOW," one of them wrote while another said, "youtube says BYE SISTER to james charles *FIRED*." A third quipped, "did james charles and david dobrik really get fired from youtube?"

The next remarked, "@TeamYouTube Also, I heard from keem that you fired james charles and david dobrik? Wow, big W to you! I know it must have hurt to lose those revenue, but you did the right thing, so thank you. A bigger thanks for slowing the spread of youtube predators too! You're saving youtube." One more said, "omg help i picked up my phone this morning to see a youtube notification saying “james charles fired” sooo is james leaving instant influencer?!" Another wrote, "Damn, David Dobrik & James Charles Fired by Youtube."

A commenter tweeted, "@jamescharles is so deluded entitled thinking people have for gotten about his pedophile behavior, he got replaced basically fired from his own show guess susan can't protect him anymore an he got called out by a major designer an still on Instagram pretending nothing happened."



 



 



 



 



 



 



 

Was James Charles fired by YouTube?

A YouTube representative confirmed to Variety that the second season of 'Instant Influencer' would be going in a “new creative direction”. In the statement, the representative for the streaming platform didn’t provide a reason for Charles’ departure from the show which had a “breakout first season” that hit “over 53 million views in its first month alone”.

“We can confirm Season 2 of the YouTube originals series ‘Instant Influencer’ will take a new creative direction, including a new host,” the rep said. “We thank James for a great first season, and look forward to building on the show’s success by expanding the opportunity to showcase a diversity of creators across the YouTube platform in our upcoming season.”

James Charles attends The 2019 Met Gala Celebrating Camp: Notes on Fashion at Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 6, 2019, in New York City (Getty Images)

YouTube had previously announced that Charles would host the second season of 'Instant Influencer', which is a show where contestants “put their best makeup artistry, camera presence, and selling power on display. Along with Charles, it had celebrity guest judges, and beauty industry veterans judging their talent. YouTube renewed the show for Season 2 in June 2020.

Was David Dobrik fired by YouTube?

In another statement, a YouTube representative said, "We have strict policies that prohibit sexual harassment on YouTube and take allegations of sexual assault very seriously. We have temporarily suspended monetization on David Dobrik and Durte Dom channels for violating our Creator Responsibility policy." 

David Dobrik attends the front row at the Cynthia Rowley fashion show February 2020 - New York Fashion Week: The Shows at Gallery I at Spring Studios on February 11, 2020, in New York City (Getty Images)

However, it should be pointed out that demonetizing is not the same as firing. It just means that creators cannot earn any revenue from advertisements on their videos or channel. Videos could also be removed from YouTube's Account Monetization Program, in which brands can pick and choose whose videos they want their ads to appear on. Brands such as HBO Max, EA, HelloFresh, Dollar Shave Club and SeatGeek have already cut ties with Dobrik.
 
Dobrik cannot be "fired" by YouTube as he is an independent creator who posts content to the website. For the time being, it appears he has been demonetized and YouTube will no longer be a source of income for him.

His first response video to a sexual assault allegation was ill-received. So on March 22, 2021, he put out a second one, detailing the steps he would be taking to prevent such misconduct from happening in the future. In the second video, he said he would be, "Taking a break from posting videos so that he can add 'infrastructure' to support his channel, including bringing in an HR employee who can help others 'communicate discomfort in a way that’s comfortable to them'." 

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