First Logan Paul, then Johnny Somali, and now this imbecile: as tourist numbers in Japan near their pre-pandemic levels, the number of nuisance influencers is on the rise.
A rise in the antics of nuisance influencers in Japan, who are accused of duping train ticket collectors and pretending to be homeless to get cash, has caused consternation in the country as tourism number near their pre-pandemic levels. A railway company in Japan is investigating allegations that a group of four popular foreign YouTubers had travelled long distances by train without paying. One of the suspected fare dodgers, known online as Fidias, posted a video to his 2.38 million subscribers over the weekend showing him and three others evading rail staff and blagging free food. In one clip, he locks himself in the toilet of a bullet train and feigns illness when challenged by a ticket collector. The Cypriot YouTuber, whose real name is Fidias Panayiotou, then boards another train, promising to pull the same trick again. Another clip shows the self-described "professional mistake maker" pretending to be a hotel guest so he can eat breakfast there for free.
If he does get nabbed by the police I hope they also have a charge for the "influencing" part as well. He is after-all influencing others to commit crimes and I am sure there is some law against that in Japan.
American nuisance streamer Johnny Somali (real name: Ramsey Khalid Ismael), who traveled to Japan and filmed himself threatening to kill Japanese people with nuclear weapons, was formally charged with the…
American nuisance streamer Johnny Somali (real name: Ramsey Khalid Ismael), who traveled to Japan and filmed himself threatening to kill Japanese people with nuclear weapons, was formally charged with the…
YouTubers who make videos of themselves doing pranks or purposely trying to irritate others in public have gained popularity for years. Despite their popularity, some consider what they do a nuisance; thus, the term “nuisance YouTuber” spawned. One such YouTuber who gained considerable...
japantoday.com
The article mentions "The Subway Monkey Hour". Has anyone seen this before?
In 2002, MTV aired "The Subway Monkey Hour" featuring comedian Tom Green. In it, Green uses his outlandish prank/nuisance style of comedy, of which he is considered a pioneer, to create uncomfortable situations for Japanese people. For example, one of the most outlandish parts of the special was when he visited a conveyor belt sushi shop and placed a sex toy, walkie-talkie and camcorder on a plate. As it revolved around the room, the camcorder recorded customers' reactions as the sex toy vibrated, and he said inappropriate things through the walkie-talkie. The customer reacted negatively, and the staff became angry and kicked him out. However, it was a big hit in America then and is still considered a great comedy special with an IMDb rating of 7.6 out of 10.
YouTubers who make videos of themselves doing pranks or purposely trying to irritate others in public have gained popularity for years. Despite their popularity, some consider what they do a nuisance; thus, the term “nuisance YouTuber” spawned. One such YouTuber who gained considerable...
japantoday.com
The article mentions "The Subway Monkey Hour". Has anyone seen this before?
Yeah, prison time for it might be a slippery slope. But I do agree, throw them out and put them on a Youtube channel of idiot YouTube influencers who have been thrown out of the country.
I'd think that the laws currently in place should be sufficient to keep these guys in check. Things like being filmed without consent, or using a location for filming without approval and then using that film for commercial purposes. I do think these guys are a new kind of nuisance, and maybe require a new kind of response. Going someplace with intent to cause disruption, filming that disruption, and then using that film to your monetary benefit, is just horrible.
I'd think that the laws currently in place should be sufficient to keep these guys in check. Things like being filmed without consent, or using a location for filming without approval and then using that film for commercial purposes. I do think these guys are a new kind of nuisance, and maybe require a new kind of response. Going someplace with intent to cause disruption, filming that disruption, and then using that film to your monetary benefit, is just horrible.
I'd think that the laws currently in place should be sufficient to keep these guys in check. Things like being filmed without consent, or using a location for filming without approval and then using that film for commercial purposes. I do think these guys are a new kind of nuisance, and maybe require a new kind of response. Going someplace with intent to cause disruption, filming that disruption, and then using that film to your monetary benefit, is just horrible.
oh yeah, they absolutely don't care, you'd have to hold them to account to spur them to any kind of action. I just meant that since the influencers do this for attention and clicks, if doing this kind of thing got them booted from the platform (and lost them all of their followers and revenue), they'd think twice before filming themselves committing crimes or being a nuisance.
I just saw a video posted by a "sovereign citizen" in an apparent traffic stop where they lecture the out-of-frame officer about their rights and use their magic word salad to get out of a situation that would 100% end with them getting ticketed and having their car towed (or even end with their arrest or worse, as I've seen numerous bodycam videos where that exact scenario plays out).
It didn't take long for the alarm bells to go off in my head to say "this has got to be staged"... you never see the police car or lights and barely see someone who might be in a security guard outfit, they say they edited out the officer's name "for their safety," and even the most patient cop in the world wouldn't let this guy drone on for 10 minutes after declaring he didn't have or need a driver's license or registration to "travel" in an "automobile."
In most jurisdictions he'd be lucky to be walking home that day. But at the end of the video the supposed officer gets jedi mind-tricked and walks away while the protagonist makes a face into the camera that says "see, if you do it just like that you'll get away with it! Like and follow for more."
And I know that there are folks out there that would watch this dishonest, misleading garbage, and possibly think they just learned how to stand up for their rights, and then go out and try it for themselves. In other words, this guy's video isn't just entertainment, it encourages others to act in a way that causes a drain on public resources, and leads to serious consequences for anyone who takes him seriously...
I guess the internet has just naturally evolved to reward bad behavior, as a result of it being set up as an attention-based economy. Whatever drives engagement will get the most signal boost, and outrage is proven to be one of the most compelling emotions, so outrageous individuals get an inordinate amount of attention. Since the "invisible hand" is clearly a myth, it'll take some actual intelligent design and human intervention to stamp out bad behavior.
But of course, this inevitably leads us into the endless loop discussions of:
who gets to determine what behavior is bad?
what checks and balances are in place to avoid abuse of power?
at what point does moderation intrude on rights or limit free speech?
Is there such a thing as free speech in an ecosystem of privately-held websites?
Do you hold platforms accountable for the information they are used to traffic and spread?
to what extent do you need to protect people from false, misleading, or destructive information? Are people who are fooled victims, or is it their own responsibility to "do their own research" and realize they're being lied to?
Are most people even capable of knowing when and how they're being manipulated?
Most of this maelstrom of discussion topics you raised could be solved simply by applying "common sense" and a spoonful of utilitarism. There are many reasons to criticise groupthink and peer pressure in Japanese society, but what I appreciate about Japan is that the boundaries of what's acceptable aren't under the constant challenge of miscreants harbouring ulterior motives and hidden agendas.
Most of this maelstrom of discussion topics you raised could be solved simply by applying "common sense" and a spoonful of utilitarism. There are many reasons to criticise groupthink and peer pressure in Japanese society, but what I appreciate about Japan is that the boundaries of what's acceptable aren't under the constant challenge of miscreants harbouring ulterior motives and hidden agendas.
Good riddance indeed, but that fine is far too low in my estimation. I would put it at least at 150-200% of whatever he made off his channel from the moment he started posting videos he filmed in Japan. It needs to be way more trouble than it's worth to pull this kind of crap, otherwise the fine is just a cost of doing "business"
Hmm, while I wouldn't say it's our true nature or desire, I would agree that negativity and reactivity are innate behaviors (and powerful drivers of engagement), and the content out there that triggers those responses probably cause endorphins to release, which creates an addiction cycle of sorts.
We even have a name for it, doomscrolling; we know it's bad and bad for us, but we fall into these internet holes regardless. I don't WANT to be angry all the time at how stupid people act, or outraged at whatever politician, celebrity, or random yahoo's bad behavior, but there is still a compulsion to watch that video of grown-*** adults throwing a fit, or making a bad-faith argument that makes me want to yell at the TV. I have to exercise willpower to pull myself away from the screen. Even spending time in digital detox and recognizing how much better my mental health was for it; when I get the phone back in hand it's hard not to succumb to those same patterns.
So it's more like content creators knowingly or unknowingly tap into this innate human weakness and exploit it for their own gain. The internet has sorta turned into a giant lie generator that tells you whatever it thinks will get the most reaction and engagement out of you.
The woman has since deleted the post, saying she did not realize that she was in a sacred place and acted without thinking.
www.japantimes.co.jp
The annoying video of the foreign tourist whom criticism is inundated with now.
I did a muscular workout at the torii of a thing or the Shinto shrine which there would be.
The gringa who chins himself/herself at a torii.
Until twist exercise to make health tricky if I think whether you lifted the foot of right and left.
At another place.
The woman who stands on hand suddenly on the stairs in front of the torii.
Then I have begun to go down the stairs while standing on hand.
The muscular workout video which was photographed in a Shinto shrine.
It is two gringa that appeared.
On earth who is it?
It is a sister of the Chilean that posted the video of the problem.
It is popular Instagram glamour girl having 130,000 followers.
I post a video standing on hand by sports gym when I look at the YouTube channel.
It is said that two people are former gymnasts.
Two people are considered to have repeated taking picture of annoying video in a Shinto shrine visited by sightseeing of Japan.
I touch an entry with "anger to the Chilean woman who chinned herself at a torii of Japan" in TV and a newspaper in local Chile of sisters and am taken up, and it is in a disturbance.
Though "I like Japanese culture, as for this, it is rude which it "thinks that it is not good from a foreign tourist to see a video to underestimate culture". There may be an angry person; "went to Kyoto , and knew that must bow before entering the torii. Is not the place where the Shinto shrine plays sports; of some said.
The expert knowing a lot about a Shinto shrine, a Buddhist temple points out the act to chin itself at a torii with manner violation.
Shinto shrine Buddhist temple expert, Hiroyasu Sakahara:
(in the torii) The act that is dangerous in what I do not have so that a person hangs. The torii is a role of the prevention against evil to express in "the point living of God from here". I want you to stop the act to pollute the religion facilities of other countries like this time.
Seriously, how hard is it for people to respect the cultures they visit around the world? What if I suddenly started doing jumping jacks in a Chilean Catholic church during Sunday Mass or climbed on top of the pulpit? What is wrong with people? If you can't act respectful stay home!
A Chilean lady, Anita, is being prosecuted by a local government for her husband's presence. Her husband embezzled 14 oku en (about US $14 million). He gave her about half and kept the rest for himself. His Chilean wife took the money and moved back to Chile, where she built two houses...
Seriously, how hard is it for people to respect the cultures they visit around the world? What if I suddenly started doing jumping jacks in a Chilean Catholic church during Sunday Mass or climbed on top of the pulpit? What is wrong with people? If you can't act respectful stay home!
The problem is social media notoriety. Even if they get in trouble it is just more notoriety, and in turn it makes more people want to do stupid things to get notoriety.
No press is bad press in the outrage economy. Johnny Somali, Andrew Tate, Sean Strickland, Marjorie Taylor Greene... They're all very different people doing very different things, but the thing they all share in common is that they are trolls: their social credit increases with exposure, and criticism only seems to strengthen their relative brands. The only thing that seems to effectively counter this is to ignore them except to mock them. Simply call them idiots and quickly move on, any more engagement with their outrageous behavior is counter-productive.
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