There’s a new viral trend impacting grieving families. I tell you what YouTube is — or isn’t — doing about it.
YouTubers are creating memorial videos for people they’ve never met
Earlier this year, a very dear friend of mine — and a talented 47-year-old cancer doctor and researcher — fell to the ground after delivering a presentation to hundreds of colleagues. All those doctors were in the room, and he passed away. So heartbreaking.
When I heard what happened, I looked online for information about his memorial service. I found what his family posted and made a donation in his name — but I found something else, too.
It was a video on YouTube of a guy in his mid-20s in India reading his obituary. Wait, what? Turns out this wasn’t a one-off but a new business model.
Wait, what?
You can’t make this stuff up. Anonymous YouTube creators are publishing videos about someone who died just for likes, follows and, in some cases, cash.
Take 25-year-old Tanner Kinslow. He passed away from an overdose. Within 72 hours of making a GoFundMe page, the family found almost a dozen YouTube videos across 10 channels — all about Tanner. His parents didn’t know the people putting up the videos.
The Kinslows aren’t the only family dealing with these bizarre, emotionally draining YouTube videos. It’s a disturbing trend.
Follow the money
The Kinslow family was tipped off by a friend about the videos. Tanner’s father, Donovan, told ABC 70 that none of the videos contained fake donation links, as they suspected. The only goal was to get viewers to like, comment and subscribe.
YouTube channels like these are full of countless similar videos about other people. The accounts typically feature creators outside the U.S.; many videos aren’t even in English. I saw a bunch, likely from India and Pakistan.
The average monthly incomes in India and Pakistan are $387 and $287, respectively. Making a few hundred dollars in YouTube revenues is big bucks in these countries.
Several channels have strange, tech-related names, like “Technical Golo” and “tech with munawar.” Why? Those are highly-searched terms.
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How YouTube creators use your loved one's death for their own profit and gain
There’s a new viral trend impacting grieving families. I tell you what YouTube is — or isn’t — doing about it, in 60 seconds.