CLEVELAND OHIO: Logan Paul once again stirred controversy for allegedly targeting youngsters with his energy drink, 'Prime,' and claiming high caffeine content. This comes after criticism for promoting sponsored products and engaging in questionable social media antics. Paul has been directly embroiled in so many disputes that the YouTube star may be living proof that cancel culture does not exist or, at the very least, has little financial influence on the lives of the wealthy and famous.
In 2014, Ohio-born comedian Paul launched a sketch account on Vine, building a YouTube empire with 23 million subscribers. He co-founded Team 10, a social media star incubator, and became one of the wealthiest content creators in 2018. Paul's career in professional wrestling with WWE has been influenced by his polarizing stunt king reputation.
Logan Paul's 5 biggest controversies of all time
1. PRIME Energy Drinks (2023)
Senator Charles Schumer of New York has asked the FDA to look into Paul's drink, Prime, for its marketing and caffeine content. “One of the summer’s hottest status symbols for kids is not an outfit, or a toy — it’s a beverage,” Schumer wrote in his complaint. “But buyer and parents beware because it’s a serious health concern for the kids it so feverishly targets.” He also stated that, despite the fact that the drink is labeled "not recommended for children under the age of 18," there is no discernible difference between Prime Energy and the caffeine-free Prime Hydration, which could lead to errors.
A representative for Prime stated, "Prime Energy, sold in a can, dropped in 2023 and contains a comparable amount of caffeine to other top-selling energy drinks, all falling within the legal limit of the countries it’s sold in.” “It is complied with all FDA guidelines before hitting the market and states clearly on packaging, as well as in marketing materials, that it is an energy drink and is not made for anyone under the age of 18," he further added.
2. Crypto Zoo (2023)
The crypto frenzy reached internet stars with Paul advocating the NFT-based scheme CryptoZoo, a video game where users hatch and rear NFT animals with increasing value. However, he never followed through on his promises and the whole game was never released. A class action complaint was launched against Paul after a three-part investigation series by Stephen Findeisen, the YouTube crypto investigator known as CoffeeZilla, charging the developer of fraud and negligent business practices.
Paul, for his part, blamed his developers and denied any involvement. Representatives for Paul previously informed Rolling Stone that "all deserving parties will be reimbursed." "Paul made the business decision to forego an expensive and time-consuming process to create or support a functional CryptoZoo game, and instead deliberately undertook a scheme to defraud Plaintiff and other consumers," read the suit, which is still ongoing.
3. Podcast Apologies (2019)
Not to be surpassed by his brother Jake Paul's multiple and wholly distinct problems, Paul drew backlash for comments he made on his 'Impaulsive' podcast. During a discussion of his New Year's resolutions, Paul stated that he will have a "male-only March" by attempting "to go gay for just one month."
The creator has been accused of making fun of the LGBTQ community. "That's not how it works," the queer advocacy organization GLAAD tweeted. Paul apologized for the remark, but not before recommending that the organization assist him with some additional content. "Very poor word choice... my fault," he replied. "How about we get together next week and talk about it on my podcast?"
4. Tasering Dead Rats (2018)
Weeks after Paul was widely and publically punished for a video produced for shock value, the creator had all adverts removed from his videos after posting a vlog in which he fired a taser at two dead rats he discovered on his balcony. He also extracted a live koi fish from the water and "performed CPR" on it by repeatedly pressing on its stomach.
The animal rights organization PETA demanded that the video be removed from YouTube, stating, “Logan Paul, TRUE mavericks don’t find humor in suffering & death. It’s time to stop. This sort of content has no place on YouTube or anywhere else, as it could desensitize young people to cruelty to animals.”
YouTube temporarily suspended ads on Logan Paul's videos due to his closely related suicide forest vlog, deeming his channel unsuitable for advertisers and potentially damaging to the creator community. Paul was later allowed to monetize his content.
5. Suicide Forest Vlog (2017)
Paul filmed a controversial video in Japan in December 2017, in the Aokigahara forest, known as Japan's suicide forest. The video, which gained 6 million views, showed uncensored images of a guy who appeared to have hanged himself.
Paul erased the video, and YouTube kicked him off of its exclusive Google Preferred advertising tier. Paul apologized publicly and vowed to donate $1 million to suicide prevention. He apologized and faulted parents for failing to oversee their children's television programs.
