The killer urged people to “subscribe to PewDiePie,” the pseudonym of the YouTube star Felix Kjellberg, who said this “absolutely sickened” him.
One of YouTube’s biggest celebrities found himself entangled early Friday in news coverage of the mass shooting at two mosques in New Zealand.
A gunman who had broadcast part of the attack that left at least 49 people dead urged those watching to “subscribe to PewDiePie,” referring to the alias used by Felix Kjellberg, a Swede whose channel has long dominated YouTube and courted controversy along the way.
Mr. Kjellberg was quick to distance himself from the shooting.
“I feel absolutely sickened having my name uttered by this person,” he said on Twitter. “My heart and thoughts go out to the victims, families and everyone affected by this tragedy.”
Mr. Kjellberg is no stranger to controversy. In recent years, he has been embraced by some on the far right and faced criticism for his use of anti-Semitic imagery and racist and sexist language. Here is a closer look at PewDiePie and the New Zealand gunman’s words.
As PewDiePie, Mr. Kjellberg has amassed a following of 89 million YouTube subscribers over the past decade with videos that feature a mix of comedic rants, commentary and videogame narration.
Though edited, the videos carry an intimate, unguarded aesthetic that has helped Mr. Kjellberg remain relevant and sought after by advertisers. According to Forbes, a sponsored video with PewDiePie can cost up to $450,000. Mr. Kjellberg earned $15.5 million last year.
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There’s more to the gunman’s words — “subscribe to PewDiePie” — than meets the eye.
