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YouTube Temporarily Suspends Ads on Logan Paul's Channels

Since returning to the platform following his 'suicide forest' video controversy, Paul has encouraged his followers to try the Tide Pod challenge and tasered a rat on camera.

Angela Moscaritolo
 & Angela Moscaritolo Managing Editor, Consumer Electronics

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YouTube has suspended advertisements on channels run by Logan Paul, one of the platform's biggest stars, following the vlogger's "recent pattern of behavior."

The move comes after Paul in late December posted a video which appeared to show a dead body in Japan's infamous Aokigahara forest, also known as "suicide forest." The video, which has since been removed, sparked major backlash online and prompted Paul to take a month-long hiatus from daily vlogging before returning to YouTube last month with a video about suicide prevention and promises to "learn from the past."

The punishment should be a financial hit for Paul, who can reportedly rake in around $36,000 a day via his monetized YouTube videos.

In a statement to PCMag, a YouTube spokesperson said "careful consideration" went into this decision.

"This is not a decision we made lightly, however, we believe he has exhibited a pattern of behavior in his videos that makes his channel not only unsuitable for advertisers, but also potentially damaging to the broader creator community," the company said.

The "suicide video" wasn't Paul's only recent infraction contributing to this decision, YouTube said. Since returning to the platform, Paul has encouraged his followers to try the potentially deadly Tide Pod challenge and tasered a rat on camera.

"To be suitable for advertising, videos must comply with the AdSense Program Policies," YouTube states in its guidelines. "Serious or repeated violations of these policies may lead to ads being disabled for your channel or suspension from the YouTube Partner Program."

The streaming video site also recently removed Paul from its Google Preferred program, which lets brands run ads on videos from the most popular YouTube channels, and cut him from the upcoming season of Foursome, a comedy show on its premium YouTube Red service.

"Suicide is not a joke, nor should it ever be a driving force for views," YouTube wrote on Twitter in early January. At the time, the company said it was taking steps to "ensure a video like this is never circulated again."

Following the controversy, YouTube last month promised to spend $5 million this year funding videos that promote positive social messages.

About Our Expert

Angela Moscaritolo

Angela Moscaritolo

Managing Editor, Consumer Electronics

My Experience

I'm PCMag's managing editor for consumer electronics, overseeing an experienced team of analysts covering smart home, home entertainment, wearables, fitness and health tech, and various other product categories. I have been with PCMag for more than 10 years, and in that time have written more than 6,000 articles and reviews for the site. I previously served as an analyst focused on smart home and wearable devices, and before that I was a reporter covering consumer tech news. I'm also a yoga instructor, and have been actively teaching group and private classes for nearly a decade. 

Prior to joining PCMag, I was a reporter for SC Magazine, focusing on hackers and computer security. I earned a BS in journalism from West Virginia University, and started my career writing for newspapers in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.

The Technology I Use

My little Florida beach bungalow is brimming with smart home tech. I have a smart speaker or display in every room, allowing me to control other connected devices by voice. The Nest Hub on my bedside table lets me set wake-up alarms, control my smart light bulbs, and set the temperature on my smart thermostat. I use the Amazon Echo Show 8 on my kitchen counter to browse recipes, reorder protein powder, check the weather, and watch the news while I do dishes. 

Because I suffer from allergies, air purifiers are essential. My favorite model is the Dyson Purifier Cool TP07, which doubles as a fan and continuously sends indoor pollution data to its companion mobile app. 

My pitbull Bradley sheds, so a good robot vacuum is a must. I currently use a premium Ecovacs Deebot that can both vacuum and mop, empty its own dustbin, and wash its own mop cloth. 

For fitness, I like to mix up my routine with cycling, indoor rowing, running, and strength training in addition to yoga. I take classes on the Tonal 2 smart strength training machine, I row indoors on an Aviron machine, and track my beach runs with an Apple Watch while listening to music on my Apple AirPods Pro. On the weekends, I love riding e-bikes like the rugged, beach-friendly Aventon Aventure for fun and fitness.

My job involves a lot of virtual meetings, so a quality webcam, microphone, and ring light are important. I use the Jabra PanaCast 20 webcam, the Elgato Wave: 3 microphone, and a Yesker tripod ring light. 

As for my preferred phone platform, I'm an iPhone person, but I've also extensively used Android for product testing.

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