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MrBeast’s Squid Game Parody is a Danger to Digital Culture
It’s important to be critical of the “creator economy” — even if you like the content
One of the best things about viral content is that it creates incredible academic fodder to dissect, analyze and lecture on. MrBeast’s Squid Game parody video has generated nearly as much course material for me as KONY 2012. Last week, when I criticized MrBeast and his work in one of my media production courses, I received some angry feedback. Fortunately, it led to an incredible discussion about media, power and culture.
Simply put: MrBeast and YouTubers of his ilk have more control over the media industry than we think. Their content reaches audiences faster than corporate media, their message gets prioritized over original meaning, and their fandoms are surprisingly unwavering and passionate.
MrBeast’s work, so to speak, is about power. It’s about the power he wields in comparison to traditional media content (including Netflix) that promotes culture and awareness through allegorical or metaphorical (read: contextual) interpretations.
The viral success of MrBeast’s “$456,000 Squid Game in Real Life!” video means that many viewers, like some of my students, have come to associate Squid Games through MrBeast’s version rather than through its original series, thereby removing its original context and meaning. As NBC tech journalist Kat Tenbarge succinctly tweeted: “Now what if — bear with me here — the stakes of this game were life and death, painting a grim portrait of capitalism.”
MrBeast fans were exceptionally pleased by his “Squid Games” video, going all out and exclaiming that the “promise of the creator economy” is to bypass the gatekeepers, accelerate time, and attain more views than corporate media. I’ve incessantly heard the narrative about the promise of the creator economy since I began studying YouTube in 2006. Unlike 2006, the stakes are higher today than ever before. Misinformation flows bombard us…
