Warning: this article contains sensitive topics that may trigger some readers

One of the most prominent YouTubers today, 24-year-old David Dobrik, has been tangled in yet another scandal amid a newly-surfaced sexual harassment allegation from a 2017 vlog. The video, now racking up over 10 million views, included clips of Dobrik explaining that he was going to prank fellow Vlog Squad member Joseth “Seth” Francois by kissing who he thought was their friend Corrina Kopf but was actually 44-year-old comedian Jason Nash in disguise. 

A few years following the incident, Francois came forward to say that, after taking the time to reflect, he had been sexually assaulted and did not give consent for this prank. 

Wanting to initially brush it off and “be the bigger man,” he eventually called a sexual assault hotline and immediately realized the truth of the situation after the person he spoke with validated his feelings of being violated.

“They said it directly to me. They said, ‘I’m sorry you were sexually assaulted.’ And I broke down,” Francois told Buzzfeed News. “I called my mother and some of my close friends and I said, ‘I can’t believe that happened to me.’”

He asked Dobrik to take down the video multiple times over the years with no success. Instead, Dobrik offered him money to keep the video online.

The initial apology video uploaded on Dobrik’s backup YouTube channel titled “Let’s talk,” leveled into the incident with former Vlog Squad member Francois by saying he “missed the mark.” 

Fans quickly criticized his two-minute response video for being scripted, ingenuine and even rushed. Some noted how his intent was to have an open conversation about mistakes he made yet the comments were turned off. 

There was also a feeling that he was pinning the blame on others he worked with for mistakes that were made.

“I don’t stand for any misconduct, and I’ve been really disappointed by some of my friends, and for that reason, I have separated from a lot of them,” Dobrik said.

Francois also added that being in that environment with Dobrik and his friends comes with constant pressure to doing things. Being the only black man in the room during video productions, Vlog Squad members and then fans started to make him the center of racist jokes. 

“I had fans on my page putting my face on pieces of fried chicken—stuff that was pretty disgraceful,” Francois said. 

Dobrik later dropped a second video on his main YouTube account, “03/22/21,” in which he apologized for his lack of authenticity and addressed another recent allegation from a separate video more vividly in order to avoid being vague.

“I was completely disconnected from the fact that when people were invited to film videos with us, especially videos that relied on shock for views or whatever it was, that I was creating an unfair power dynamic,” Dobrik said.

Being such an influential creator, there is a widespread feeling that Dobrik is not held to the same standard as others and therefore gets away with a lot of his actions. Dobrik has a history of not being accountable for his mistakes.

Aside from the 2017 prank video involving Francois, he has also released a now-deleted video in which former Vlog Squad member Dominykas Zeglaitis—nicknamed Durte Dom—was accused of raping an underaged intoxicated girl who was involved in sexual activity but did not have the ability to give consent. Dobrik and Dom were said to have pressured multiple girls to get drunk and “loosen up” while knowing that they were underage.

Another former collaborator Nick Keswani, also known as “Big Nik,” came forward to talk about his toxic experience in the squad as he was the designated target of their jokes because of his dwarfism and disabilities. Eventually talking to Dobrik about his feelings, he felt as though the group no longer needed him once he discouraged them from joking about his disabilities. 

Trisha Paytas, similar to the others’ accounts, detailed this toxic work environment in interviews as this unspoken rule that if you don’t want to participate in certain activities or jokes that you will be kicked out of the group. 

Paytas came forward with allegations against Vlog Squad members years ago, which was met with public ridicule until now as she is finally be accredited for the history of abuse she has endured from the Vlog Squad.

As content creators now hold more unregulated power and money,  many viewers demand a greater sense of responsibility and accountability from up-and-coming stars while producing videos. 

“I don’t hate David. He’s obviously a pretty good guy,” Francois said. “But when we make mistakes, no matter how good we are, we have to make those mistakes right.”