Big shout out to them leaving the links to LTT merch in the description. Venal fucks.
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So I just watched the entire team apologize for Linus and then Linus proceeded to attempt to gaslight everyone watching.
Fuck this guy.
Monetizing an apology video of all things says it all.
From the majority of the team, this is a pretty good and textbook PR mea culpa. "Here's how we screwed up, here's how we're fixing it."
The pushing the merch was tone-deaf and the defensive whining from Linus was NOT on-point, though. I appreciate it ended with "how I'm going to fix it," but he should keep the defensive shit to himself.
It would be better if the CEO could learn to read a prompter so it looks like he's not reading one.
This is pretty annoying to watch with his eyes looking above the camera and going left and right constantly.
I agree that it's good they're acknowledging the problems but that video felt like an interrogation. So corporate and weird.
In fairness, they would have been absolutely stupid to have not done a 100% prewritten, teleprompted PR riddled pre-written response given the situation. Linus sitting down in front of a camera and just letting his mind do Linus things isn't gonna help anyone lol.
You mean like he did on the forums about three hours after the GN video dropped?
Bingo!
@Chozo The end of the video:
But Dbrand did offer
... is basically advertisement for the brand, packed into "a joke". Why would they mention it otherwise?
Guess, I am out of the loop.
After Linus blasted people using ad-blockers (fucking hypocrite), I uh, just blocked his channel.
I loved LMG and watched their videos for years, but if you are going to put out false or exaggerated data knowingly, or auction off a one of a kind prototype, would pass me off but I might tune in from time to time for the entertainment.
But if you are called out on this and instead of trying to do the right thing you double down and even straight up lie to try to make a case where you aren't the bad guy, then I am done with LMG channels as I can not support a company with this clown.
IMO a good answer and directly adresses my biggest stated problem of "we know stuff goes wrong, but we don't care about them" (see https://lemmings.world/comment/1218294)
The thing about Madison: if true it's very concerning, but for now it's only one person who told about these problems and I don't know her enough to trust her like that without proof. In contrast: I trust GN and they showed proof
But that doesn't mean you should ignore these accusations and I would like to see an answer from LMG.
This is MY opinion on this matter. Your opinion may vary!
Re: Madison, she sprinkled a bunch of non-issues (edit: I don't mean to downplay the more serious issues she raises! I'm concerned that this would leave room for others to do so) or things that are normal for companies that aren’t super huge- the journal/lined paper debacle for example. Of course the company focused on profit is going to ask you to make do with essentially the same thing. That’s super normal.
Being asked to manage the OF despite objections isn’t super bad when you are literally hired just to do social media. It’s unpleasant, but most jobs are going to have unpleasant moments. At a similar pay scale, I’ve been required to go into homes where folks had COVID. Coworkers have been shot at. I’ve seen things I really would have preferred not to. No job is perfectly sane in that sense.
Some of the issues where Madison said “they wanted me to do x and I couldn’t because y” (red footage editing/ram comes to mind) feel like issues where she would be told something, then would vent in her head instead of going “hey, I don’t have enough ram to edit that footage!” - something I’ve encountered a ton with less experienced (in a business sense, not skill) hires.
The managerial and behavioral issues she brings up are awful but not entirely surprising given the type of folk who stick around there. It indicates a systemic issue and that usually happens due to a lack of oversight and course-correction, or outright malicious management. I’m hopeful that it’s the former.
Last but not least, she repeatedly states it was her dream job. This is an experience that should hopefully show her to never meet your heroes! Dream jobs usually suck unless you get lucky, because they have lots of rough edges. Hopefully she’s doing something that brings her more joy now.
You can't force a woman to manage an OF account against her will, knowing VERY WELL what she'll be exposed to. That's fucked up.
Why "a woman" specifically? And how would that be against her will?
Because the internet is exceptionally shit against women in particular, and because she clearly stated she didn’t want to do it.
This is kinda basic stuff.
It was expressly against her will as per her own words. And as for why "a woman", its rather well known women already deal with much more sexual harassment and maltreatment online than men do. Just look at the market of AI generated porn of celebrities and online personalities as proof of this. So forcing a woman, who already has a public presence no less, to manage a platform such as OnlyFans, and constantly see and have to manage sexual objectification and harassment towards her as well as her coworkers, is unacceptable in my opinion.
Have you seen how men act when they’re horny? Especially on the internet? She probably still gets gross DMs constantly.
They basically set her up for harassment for life.
I feel that your post is belittling a situation that, as narrated, is straight up mobbing and bullying, only acknowledging it in a small paragraph which I feel boils down to a dismissive "awful but only maybe malicious, probably just lack of oversight", while the rest of your comment tries to find excuses and normalizing something that is not.
These:
I was asked about my sexual history, my boyfriends sexual history, "how I liked to fuck".
I was told that certain issues were "sexual tension" and I should just "take the co-worker out on a coffee date to ease it out"
I was told I was chunky, fat, ugly, stupid. I was called "retarded" I was called a "faggot"
My work was called "dogs--t" I was called "incompetent".
"I think the reason you try to be funny, is because you lack any other skills." smiled then walked away.
I watched co-workers get what I had asked for weeks before they did. It took 2 months to get mine.
Also apparently some managers didn't like me because I "hadn't gotten drunk with them before" Which was said in that haha just jokin (but actually I'm serious) tone
Are nor normal nor acceptable: for anyone who is in a corporation where this is common place: take a step back and understand that it is not healthy for you, bad power dynamics are a real thing and the abuse of them sometimes can feel normal, especially in small businesses that get a sudden explosive growth. And I don't even want to go into her self harming to get a day off.
You can say it was probably a single person, but the lack of action by management with phrases like "change your priorities", "put on your big girl pants" and stuff like that makes it a Company issue, Company which indirectly accept and endorse that kind of treatment: they being so against unionizing sincerely gets a whole other meaning read under this light.
The notebook case is self evidence of it all: A small thing that normally wouldn't be anything important, but compounded with the stressful environment got emotionally distressful. The fact that such a small thing has stayed with her so long should tell you that she was really not in an healthy mental state.
I don't personally care about the whole LTT fiasco, as an uninterested spectator it's fun to watch from the outside and then change channel, a blip in the media world that will most likely blow down in a couple of weeks. But reading how these actions are belittled is really distressing. Bullying is not normal, and it should never be accepted. Ever.
The full thread for whoever missed it: https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1691693740254228741.html
At a similar pay scale, I’ve been required to go into homes where folks had COVID. Coworkers have been shot at. I’ve seen things I really would have preferred not to. No job is perfectly sane in that sense.
American? Because this is not normal up here in Canada.
Other than the Madison Reeves post I just read, I am completely out of the loop on the LTT controversy. That said, I made it about 1/3 of the way through the video before I had to stop it. I know very little about these guys but that video is infuriating.
Short and sweet summary as called out by Gamers Nexus:
- Testing methodology sux and results are not sanity checked, thereby misleading consumers.
- If errors are caught, they are corrected poorly and acknowledged with asterisks or in description, which does not put enough of a spotlight on it.
- Trashing on a small company (billet labs) that makes dope coolers for performing poorly due to improper testing and not retesting because "I don't wanna spend 500 bucks"
- Not returning the prototype which was sent to them by billet labs for testing and AUCTIONING IT OFF (allegedly to a potential competitor) at LTX.
Actions speak louder than words...
Their action was to monetize the apology video, which is especially funny after Gamers Nexus explicitely didn't monetize their video. They advertised their shop and floatplane and teased a new product. Just incredible.
They really cannot help themselves. Money corrupts all.
The fact they're still hiding their testing methodologies behind floatplane makes me dubious of how effective this "housekeeping" week will be. Not that I plan on watching or interacting with anything LMG related going forward until the allegations brought up by Madison are properly handled anyway, in which then my final decision will be made.
I know Linus was pushing back REAL hard on getting a fact checker. And it would've likely prevented this situation entirely.
Edit: Other than the pushing of merch... Sigh... This is a pretty good PR mea culpa. At least from the rest of the team. I guess I should finish it. Pretty textbook. "We screwed up, here's how we're fixing it."
Edit 2: Nevermind. I got to the part with Linus. FFS.