Ninja Hits Out At His 'Toxic' Fans In Heated Accountability Debate
Tyler "Ninja" Blevins is condemning his "toxic" fans and says he doesn't support those who attack his critics on his behalf. As probably the biggest name on the streamer scene, Ninja has some 16.7 million Twitch followers alone to fight his corner. With so many avid fans, things can sometimes get a little heated in the professional circuit. We've seen the likes of Felix "xQc" Lengyel ruffle feathers with fellow content creators, but on the whole, Ninja keeps his head down. The problem is when fans attack someone just for being against Blevins' views.
No content creator is above the law, and in the fairness of opinions, some journalists are quick to point out the potential problems of Ninja not streaming with women. This issue has been raised time and time again, however, the streamer's fans are quick to get their backs up and come for anyone who has a bad word to say about Ninja. Thankfully, he's firmly against people speaking on his behalf.
Why did Ninja hit out at toxic fans?
The latest drama comes courtesy of podcast host and TV presenter Michele Morrow. She shared screenshots of some of the abuse she's received after a recent op-ed where she said Ninja not playing with women is "harmful to us". She then quoted Ninja saying she doesn't "know sh*t". The messages ranged from the mundane to the offensive, with a sample reading, "B*tch wtf is wrong with you why tf should a streamer who streams f*****g games...." (it's then cut off). Others read, "Can't talk trash to Ninja even though you yourself is trash".
Morrow said Ninja's followers "prove my point", which caught the attention of the man himself. Blevins took to Twitter and apologised on behalf of those who've been sending abuse Morrow's way. The debate continued as Ninja reiterated his stance and added, "They are not true fans if they are attacking people. I never encourage any of my audience to harass people". Even if Ninja is firmly on the side that he can stick up for himself, some have said he shouldn't have to apologise.
Some argued that at the end of the day, why is it Ninja's responsibility to keep his own fans in line. Even if he doesn't condone the actions of "toxic" fandom, can he really be held accountable for everyone? Still, there were those who firmly believe he should take more accountability for his fanbase.
Is Ninja accountable for his toxic fans?
In response to Ninja's apology, there were a number of arguments for and against. One wrote, "If you are not actively stopping your fanbase and followers from being toxic, you are just as much a problem as they are. You have the power to do this, but do not, which says all we need to know about you. Also, as a protip: Calling women "females" is generally frowned on". Another added, "Why are the people posting this sort of abuse to others following you? What sort of environment are you creating within your community to let them think that sending your critics abuse is a good idea? Maybe try disavowing them right now. Do it. Call them out".
A supporter of Blevins wrote, "Can you control the air you breathe out? As long as you don't supervise every molecule individually you are contaminating someone elses air. I mean doesn't take a lot to understand that it is impossible to control 16m people while they have public access to his content". Someone else concluded, "I can't believe y'all are asking One (uno, 1, simple, single) man to babysit his entire audience because some people he doesn't know said mean words to someone. I agree that online harassment is awful but you can't hold a CC accountable for another person's actions".
The issue has split the Twitterverse down the middle, with a thankfully (almost) universal stance that online harassment is wrong. Whether Ninja himself is in the wrong and has helped cultivate a toxic fandom is an entirely different debate for an entirely different day. At the end of the day, at least he's apologised to Morrow for any harm done.
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