A YouTube channel called 5 secondfilms (or “5SF”) has been demonetized by the Google-owned platform for sharing a five-second long video about Luigi Mangione. 5secondfilms typically produces meme-centric skits and videos that last just a few seconds. They have almost 400,000 subscribers on YouTube.
Despite the short run, the channel ended up facing repercussions for sharing a video about Luigi Mangione, a 26-year-old Ivy League graduate accused of murdering Brian Thompson, the 50-year-old CEO of UnitedHealthcare.
The video in question is a comedy sketch depicting Luigi in prison. In the clip, Santa arrives to let him know he’s at the “top” of his “nice list.” Reacting to YouTube’s actions, 5secondfilms said:
“YouTube removed our Luigi Mangione 5SF and demonetized our channel. You can still find him on our Instagram, our TikTok, and YouTube Shorts.”
While the video has been removed from YouTube (although it is available in the YouTube Shorts section of channel 5SF), it is available on other platforms such as Instagram. Watch it here:
“That’s extreme”: fans react to YouTube channel demonetization after 5-second Luigi Mangione video
Luigi Mangione has skyrocketed to infamy and become part of online meme culture. Despite the seriousness of the charges against him, he has become the center of numerous debates and trolling.
5 secondfilms appear to have faced punitive action for sharing content focused on Mangione. Even though the video is only five seconds long, his channel was demonetized and the video in question was removed from his home page.
News of this incident was shared on the popular r/LivestreamFail subreddit, sparking a wave of negative reactions. Here are some of them:
“Damn, that’s extreme,” said u/Present_Block_5430
“Oh, they’re SO AFRAID,” u/Ex-altiora commented.
“A channel that’s been around for 16 years and has created much crazier things,” u/TheHunterJK said.
“Imagine taking away all revenue from a YouTube channel for 5 seconds,” criticized u/Scar1et_Kink
“For what? There’s objectively a lot more harmful shit on the site,” said u/AnE1Home
Hours after news of Luigi Mangione’s arrest appeared online, a mysterious YouTube channel bearing his name appeared, featuring a cryptic minute-and-a-half-long video. YouTube later confirmed that the channel was removed for phishing.
Edited by Abhishek Manikandan.