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Influencers with Young Fans Get Away with More

Influencers are no stranger to scandal. At any moment their comfortable lifestyle could be ripped from under them with one trending hashtag. However, it seems that some influencers are constantly getting away with bad behavior, and the only reason they aren’t ‘canceled’ is because their fans are too young to understand the severity of the situation. Here are two examples: 

Bryce Hall

Hall has made a name for himself on TikTok. His audience grew when rumors started circling that he and Addison Rae were dating and he soon became the leader of the Sway House. He was quickly the target of ridicule and criticism when he continued to throw parties during the global pandemic. Los Angeles was on lockdown, but Hall and other members of the Sway House continued to party and even celebrated Hall’s 21st birthday. Soon, the City of LA turned off the utilities to one of their houses in an attempt to stop them. 

After this scandal, Hall was arrested with fellow Sway House member, Jaden Hossler, for a drug-related charge in Texas. The sheriff’s office later confirmed that Hall was charged with possession of less than 2 ounces of marijuana which can result in up to 180 days in county jail or a fine up to $2,000. Hossler was arrested and charged for possession of four to 400 grams of a controlled substance in penalty group two (which in Texas includes most hallucinogens and stimulants) and possession of 2 to 4 ounces of marijuana. They were released after posting a combined $11,500 bail. 

Recently, Hall got into a physical altercation at a restaurant in LA, which was recorded and posted online. Hall was using a vape inside the restaurant (it’s illegal to smoke anything inside an LA restaurant) and his waiter asked him repeatedly to stop. Hall defended himself and explained that the waiter then took his credit card and didn’t return it to him when he asked for it repeatedly. He then said that the manager attempted to escort him out of the restaurant but refused to give him back his credit card and that’s when members of the Sway House and the restaurant staff began to fight. However, multiple workers recall Hall immediately becoming aggressive after the waiter simply asked him to stop vaping. A witness also confirmed that Hall was the first one to throw a punch. Although the influencers were gone by the time the police showed up, the LAPD is investigating to confirm what happened. 

The ACE Family

Family channels on YouTube are supposed to show their audience how they live day to day. In their multimillion-dollar homes, they act like a normal family and film essentially every moment of their life. Even though these videos are filled with children laughing and a happy family, no one knows the amount of stress that is created when trying to film multiple videos per week. 

The ACE Family, which consists of Austin, Catherine, and their young children, has faced backlash for being inappropriate around their children and complaining about materialistic items that most of their fans dream of obtaining. In the past, Austin posted a video of a six-year-old licking a suggestively shaped lollipop. He filmed himself laughing at her and even purchasing the lollipop. Audiences criticized him for not only allowing her to grab the candy but also filming it and posting it for anyone to see. They’ve also faced backlash for simply having their children in the videos because of how much they film. Unlike Hollywood, there are no rules or regulations to keep children safe on YouTube. Some audience members are concerned because their young children technically cannot consent to be filmed and fear that they are being filmed too much. 

Their rise in fame has increased their wealth, but they still complain and attempt to relate to the audience that once did. For example, they created a three-part documentary which showed the construction of their multi-million dollar home. Austin and Catherine also made a video with a sad thumbnail and created clickbait to convince audiences that something horrible happened during construction. Instead, the problem in the video was them complaining that they would have to move into their home without the landscape being done. Although this is not inappropriate or hurtful, it still shows that they can’t relate to their audience anymore and they are unaware or simply don’t care enough to change their content because their young audience will still watch every video. 

Recently, The ACE Family has gotten into more serious trouble. Catherine uploaded a video titled “A Day in the Life with Catherine” where she showed the audience what she does throughout her daily life. At the beginning of the video, Catherine is filming the intro with Austin holding their daughters behind her. When Catherine begins, Austin comments on his hair and she begins to put the camera down in frustration. Austin then raises his voice and even curses at Catherine with their daughters still in the room. Catherine didn’t edit this mistake out and some audience members speculated that she did that on purpose to reveal how Austin truly behaves. The ACE Family quickly made a video in response claiming that they were bickering all morning and that Austin’s action was justified. Catherine explained that if it were a more serious situation she would leave with the children because she has the ability to do so. Austin defended himself by saying that most parents accidentally curse in front of their children. 

Although these are just two examples, they both represent the type of influencer who has a young following yet continues to post inappropriate content. Other members of the Sway House and other family channels feel just as entitled and will continue to make inappropriate content because they know it will get views and gain them more subscribers. Children who use YouTube don’t see the underlying issues with their favorite influencers, so it’s the older generation’s responsibility to hold influencers accountable.


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TikTok Challenge Gets Starbucks Employees Fired

TikTok has become insanely popular throughout the past year. Influencers have used the platform to start dance trends, introduce new transitions, and create new challenges. Although most of these trends and challenges are harmless, there has been one that has some serious consequences. 

In a video by the gossip channel, Spill, the narrator explains that there was a TikTok challenge being discussed on Reddit in which teenagers were going to Starbucks, ordering a drink, and asking for the receipt. Normally, an employee wouldn’t think twice about this and simply print it out and tell them to have a nice day. However, Def Noodles tweeted a Reddit thread along with an email from Starbucks HQ warning employees of this challenge. 

The reason the receipt is so important is that it has the employee’s partner number on it. This number is linked to the employee’s name and allows them employee perks such as a free item. Since the name and number match the employee, they are responsible for covering up their numbers using a marker or pen. 

The employee serving the TikTok user is also at fault so Starbucks HQ has required them to ask the customer (and supposed employee of other location) for government ID or their partner card. Most employees don’t carry around their partner cards, forcing them to use a government ID, which poses an issue for the trans employees.

It’s very different to change someone’s name on a government-issued ID, however, Starbucks allows its employees to be themselves at work, which can make for an uncomfortable situation. Some employees posted on the Reddit thread and shared their stories of having to practically out themselves in front of strangers to simply get a well deserved free coffee. This is a horrible problem that has impacted the trans and/or nonbinary employees specifically and it could’ve been avoided if TikTok users were responsible. 

There have been rumors that an employee has started this all. The employee created an “urban legend” and sent an email to corporate to complain about this TikTok, that didn’t actually exist. The email that Def Noodles tweeted was HQ’s response to this person. This person claims to have done it because employees never ask for confirmation when another Starbucks “employee” comes in with a partner number. They explained that employees were supposed to ask for the last name of the customer, but Starbuck HQ didn’t say that in their email.

Whether or not this is an urban legend or not, TikTok users read the Reddit post as well and began using the numbers in real life. Real people lost their jobs during a pandemic because a young girl wanted a free item that her parents most likely would’ve paid for.