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Vaush
Kochinski in 2023
Personal information
Born
Ian Anthony Kochinski

(1994-02-14) February 14, 1994 (age 30)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
EducationCalifornia State Polytechnic University, Humboldt (BA)
OccupationYouTuber
YouTube information
Channel
Years active2019–present
Subscribers481 thousand[1]
Total views372 million[1]
Associated acts
Websitevaush.gg Edit this at Wikidata
100,000 subscribers
Twitch information
Channel
Genres
Followers103 thousand
Vaush's voice
On libertarianism's relationship with socialism
Recorded February 2021
Last updated: October 15, 2024

Ian Anthony Kochinski (born February 14, 1994), better known as Vaush (/vɔːʃ/ ⓘ VAWSH), is an American left-wing YouTuber and Twitch streamer. Kochinski started his online career as a member of streamer Destiny's community, before creating his Twitch channel and YouTube account in 2019. His content consists of commentary on various news and media topics, alongside debates and discussions with various political figures. Noted for his confrontational style, use of memes, and mimicry from right-wing YouTubers, he is regarded as part of the BreadTube community.

Described as a progressive and libertarian socialist, Kochinski is considered a controversial figure online. He has received several bans on Twitch and criticism for various statements, and has also received praise for his sociological content, debates, and charity livestreams.

Early and personal life

Ian Anthony Kochinski[2] was born on February 14, 1994,[‡ 1] in Los Angeles, California, and grew up in Beverly Hills.[‡ 2] Kochinski studied sociology at Humboldt State University,[3] graduating with a BA in 2018.[‡ 3][4] Kochinski identifies as pansexual.[5][6] He is autistic and also has ADHD.[‡ 4]

Career

Kochinski has livestreamed debates with far-right figures such as Stefan Molyneux and Sargon of Akkad, which have millions of views.[7][8] His first appearances online were in discussions with the political streamer Destiny, and encouraged by Destiny's audience he later began a Twitch channel of his own.[7] He also created his YouTube account in January 2019.[4] Kochinski felt that other members of the online left at the time were too academic to reach the demographic of insecure white men that he thought was most susceptible to online radicalization and he opted to instead create loud, angry content that he thought would be more likely to appeal to them.[7] While appealing to what he calls "masculine tendencies", Kochinski has aimed to create an inclusive community and has comparatively high proportions of female, gay and trans people in his audience.[7]

Kochinski mimics the style of right-wing YouTubers and utilizes similar video titles so that his videos are suggested by recommendation algorithms to those at risk of radicalization,[9] a common strategy employed by the left-wing BreadTube community on YouTube.[10][11] He also uses memes and internet slang in his videos to appeal to the audience of primarily young people online.[7] Listed as an example of a BreadTube channel, his content features himself discussing news events and contentious issues, and debating other political streamers from the left and right,[7][8] often in a confrontational style aimed at making his opponent appear unintelligent,[7] and often utilizing the research skills and knowledge he gained from his sociology education to back up his arguments.[4] However, when engaging with conspiracy theorists, Kochinski generally does not spend much time on research or debunking debated topics, as he believes that taking a more amiable approach is better at influencing people away from such hardened views.[12] His channel also features discussions and debates with offline figures, including journalists, radio hosts, and political candidates.[4] By 2021, he amassed over 350,000 subscribers and 120 million views on his YouTube channel,[4] and as of July 2024 has over 450,000 subscribers and 340 million views.[1]

In 2019, he was banned from Twitch for saying that the US should invade Israel in defense of Palestinians, an incident which he later described as himself "going too far criticising Israeli imperialism".[7] As a result, he transitioned to YouTube as his main platform,[7] after having created his YouTube channel that January.[4] In June 2019, Kochinski debated conservative YouTuber Hunter Avallone. Avallone later said he "got wrecked in [that] debate" and subsequent to the debate his views took a leftward turn, resulting in a video titled "Why I Left The Right".[12][13] In December 2021, Kochinski was again banned from Twitch indefinitely for using the racial epithet "cracker" on stream. He used the term while discussing whether it could be considered a racial slur and if saying it should be a bannable offense following the ban of fellow Twitch streamer Hasan Piker for saying the word on stream.[14][15][16][17] In response to the ban, Kochinski told The Washington Post that social media platforms are "terrible at acknowledging context and power relations when it comes to harassment."[18]

Kochinski and fellow political streamer Destiny organized their communities to knock on more than 10,000 doors and make 50,000 phone calls in support of Janet Protasiewicz during the 2023 Wisconsin Supreme Court election.[19] In a Progressive Victory livestream that September, Kochinski, along with Destiny, Emma Vigeland, and Keffals, interviewed U.S. Representative Ro Khanna about various topics, including the importance of youth political participation and ways to push progressive political sentiment.[19][20]

Political views

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Noted as a left-wing streamer,[21][22] Kochinski is a self-described progressive,[9] anti-fascist,[23] and libertarian socialist.[7][24][23] He has also described himself as a "dirtbag leftist".[8] In the 2020 United States presidential election, he opposed the "Bernie or Bust" movement and urged people to vote for Joe Biden,[7] calling a refusal to vote "stupid" and motivated by "[an] incredibly narcissistic 'doomerism' that prevents people from engaging in meaningful action".[7] Kochinski opposes the United States embargo against Cuba and supported the withdrawal of United States troops from Afghanistan. He also opposed Donald Trump's withdrawal of United States troops from Rojava.[‡ 5] While believing that tech companies have too much power, Kochinski also felt that Donald Trump being banned from various social media websites was an "unequivocally good thing".[7] In 2022, Kochinski posted multiple videos and broadcast multiple livestreams condemning the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[23][25]

Kochinski has criticized the online right for creating a "pipeline" that pushes people to radical hard-right views such as ethnic nationalism, disenfranchising women, and for engaging in "absolute abject cruelty to trans people". He has also criticized the online left for "purity politics" and for engaging in actions that create "great content but terrible political advocacy".[7] Nonetheless, he believes that the left should engage in online advocacy because the internet allows for their message to reach a wider audience than any other medium and has argued that BreadTube has decreased the number of people online moving to the political right.[‡ 5] Following the arrest of manosphere influencer Andrew Tate, Vaush argued that Tate's rise to popularity was due to the left failing to address the problems of young men and boys, saying they were being "pulled into fascism" because "the right talks to them and the left doesn't".[26][21]

In May 2021, he opposed Twitch's use of the term "womxn", saying "There is already an inclusive term for trans women and cis women, and it's 'women' ... The only reason you [would not] believe that is if you don't believe trans women are women."[27] He has criticized Twitter for banning trans people for using the term TERF, which he argues is "categorically not a slur".[18]

Reception

Kochinski in 2022

In 2021, controversy on Twitter surrounding Vaush was prompted by the reemergence of videos in which he justified his past uses of the word nigger and argued that the word is acceptable in certain contexts.[24] Responding to the controversy on his livestream, Kochinski said that earlier statements that he had made had been a failed attempt at being "overly edgy" and that he "no longer stand[s] by" his arguments justifying the use of the word.[‡ 6]

Later in 2021, his arguments that kink should be excluded from some pride events for not being family-friendly, and for making pride inaccessible to young questioning queer people were met with divided opinions on social media[5] and criticism from writers for Vox,[28] The Mary Sue,[29] and The Bulwark,[30] though he later renounced his statements, saying "[During the] kink at pride discourse, I said some stuff that I later came to regret. I think that there were some issues I was reactionary on ... kink at pride isn't a problem".[‡ 7]

Also in 2021, Kochinski received praise from Kotaku for a charity livestream in which he raised over US$200,000 for the Palestine Children's Relief Fund[31] and from The Daily Beast for challenging Tim Pool on the meaning of critical race theory while appearing on his podcast Timcast IRL.[22] He was also positively cited by sociologist Anthony Knowles for successfully communicating sociological ideas to a large audience outside the reach of academic sociologists.[4]

See also

References

Secondary sources

  1. ^ a b c "About Vaush". YouTube.
  2. ^ https://senate.humboldt.edu/sites/default/files/_commencement_lists_2018.pdf
  3. ^ Casarez, Iridian (April 5, 2017). "Criminal Justice Dialogue". The Lumberjack. Archived from the original on February 4, 2022. Retrieved February 4, 2022.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g Knowles, Anthony J. (2021). "Sociology as Social System: Luhmann, Enlightenment, and the Gap between 'Facts' and 'Norms'". In Dahms, Harry F. (ed.). Society in Flux: Two Centuries of Social Theory. Current Perspectives in Social Theory. Vol. 37. Emerald Publishing. pp. 159–192. doi:10.1108/S0278-120420210000037006. ISBN 978-1-80262-242-3. OCLC 1259508289. S2CID 244151644.
  5. ^ a b Brandabur, Michelle (May 26, 2021). "'Sorry, but f*ck' em': Vaush's controversial 'Kink at Pride' take gets ratioed across Queer Twitter". The Daily Dot. Archived from the original on May 26, 2021. Retrieved July 22, 2021.
  6. ^ Erickson, Steve (June 18, 2021). "Dominating and Humiliating Pride Into Respectability". Gay City News. Archived from the original on February 12, 2022. Retrieved February 11, 2022.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Ellingham, Miles (January 17, 2021). "The road to BreadTube: The battle for the soul of the internet". The Independent. Archived from the original on February 21, 2022. Retrieved July 22, 2021.
  8. ^ a b c Mirrlees, Tanner (2020). "Socialists on Social Media Platforms: Communicating within and Against Digital Capitalism". In Panitch, Leo; Albo, Greg (eds.). Beyond Digital Capitalism: New Ways of Living. Socialist Register 2021. New York: New York University Press. pp. 112–136. ISBN 978-1-58367-883-1. JSTOR j.ctv27ftv9f.9. OCLC 1255908917.
  9. ^ a b Mohapatra, Anupras (March 4, 2021). "Diving into the rabbit hole". The Daily Cardinal. Archived from the original on October 5, 2021. Retrieved July 22, 2021.
  10. ^ Roose, Kevin (June 8, 2019). "The Making of a YouTube Radical". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on February 23, 2022. Retrieved October 22, 2021.
  11. ^ Lee, Alexander Mitchell (March 8, 2021). "Meet BreadTube, the YouTube activists trying to beat the far-right at their own game". The Conversation. Archived from the original on January 18, 2022. Retrieved October 22, 2021.
  12. ^ a b Gonzalez, Oscar (June 29, 2022). "Meet the Twitch, YouTube Streamers Who Deradicalize While They Debate". CNET. Archived from the original on July 1, 2022. Retrieved July 1, 2022.
  13. ^ Gutelle, Sam (June 28, 2022). "Creators are sparking political debates on YouTube and Twitch. Can they change minds?". Tubefilter. Archived from the original on June 28, 2022. Retrieved July 1, 2022.
  14. ^ Gach, Ethan (December 14, 2021). "Socialist Twitch Streamer Banned For Calling White People 'Cracker'". Kotaku. Archived from the original on March 9, 2022. Retrieved December 14, 2021.
  15. ^ Fox, Kevin (December 14, 2021). "Videogames and Politics Streamer Hasan Piker Banned From Twitch for Saying "Cracker"". Paste. Archived from the original on December 15, 2021. Retrieved December 15, 2021.
  16. ^ Shotwell, Alyssa (December 15, 2021). "Twitch Bans Hasan Piker, Vaush kicking off #CrackerGate". The Mary Sue. Archived from the original on March 5, 2022. Retrieved December 15, 2021.
  17. ^ Jackson, Gita; Gault, Matthew (December 14, 2021). "Hasan Piker Banned From Twitch for Saying 'Cracker'". Vice. Archived from the original on December 20, 2021. Retrieved December 14, 2021.
  18. ^ a b Grayson, Nathan (December 16, 2021). "Twitch suspension of Hasan Piker sparks debate over what qualifies as racist language". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on December 17, 2021. Retrieved December 16, 2021.
  19. ^ a b Lorenz, Taylor (September 28, 2023). "Democrats plan four-hour live stream with Twitch and YouTube stars". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on September 29, 2023. Retrieved October 3, 2023.
  20. ^ Gutelle, Sam (September 29, 2023). "U.S. rep Ro Khanna streamed with creators like Vaush and Emma Vigeland outside the White House". Tubefilter. Retrieved October 4, 2023.
  21. ^ a b Jennings, Rebecca (January 4, 2023). "The arrest of misogynist influencer Andrew Tate, explained". Vox. Vox Media. Archived from the original on February 1, 2023. Retrieved April 20, 2023.
  22. ^ a b Silverman, Robert (August 1, 2021). "How 'Coward and Phony' Tim Pool Became One of the Biggest Political YouTubers on the Planet". The Daily Beast. Archived from the original on February 13, 2022. Retrieved April 20, 2023.
  23. ^ a b c "Fact Check-CNN did not tweet a story about 'the Kharkiv kid finder'". Reuters. March 8, 2022. Archived from the original on March 13, 2022. Retrieved March 9, 2022.
  24. ^ a b Thalen, Mikael (March 4, 2021). "Popular leftist streamer defends right to say N-word in resurfaced video". The Daily Dot. Archived from the original on March 14, 2022. Retrieved July 22, 2021.
  25. ^ Kochi, Sudiksha (March 11, 2022). "Fact check: Fabricated CNN tweet about 'Kharkiv Kid Finder' spreads online". USA Today. Archived from the original on March 29, 2022. Retrieved March 26, 2022.
  26. ^ Cheung, Kylie (January 3, 2023). "Let's Check in on Andrew Tate's Aggrieved Fans". Jezebel. Archived from the original on January 30, 2023. Retrieved January 30, 2023.
  27. ^ López, Oscar (May 26, 2021). "Is the move to add "X" to show gender neutrality working? Or does it miss the mark?". AL DÍA News. Archived from the original on July 22, 2021. Retrieved July 22, 2021.
  28. ^ Abad-Santos, Alex (June 2, 2021). "Can Pride even be radical or kinky if it's sponsored by Target and JPMorgan?". Vox. Vox Media. Archived from the original on February 20, 2022. Retrieved July 22, 2021.
  29. ^ Weekes, Princess (May 26, 2021). "Pride Is Not a Gay Zoo. It's a Giant-Ass Celebration of a Protest". The Mary Sue. Archived from the original on July 22, 2021. Retrieved July 22, 2021.
  30. ^ Miller, Tim (June 3, 2021). "Not My Party: No Cops or Kink at Pride?". The Bulwark. Archived from the original on March 14, 2022. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
  31. ^ Grayson, Nathan (May 18, 2021). "As Gaza Burns, Twitch Charity Streams For Palestine Remain Few And Far Between". Kotaku. Archived from the original on February 15, 2022. Retrieved July 22, 2021.

Primary sources

  1. ^ Kochinski, Ian [@VaushV] (February 14, 2023). "What a fun birthday stream! I feel like, this time, we really did build socialism. Thank you!!" (Tweet). Retrieved February 15, 2023 – via Twitter.
  2. ^ Kochinski, Ian (July 31, 2023). The Honest Truth About Where I Grew Up... (Video). Retrieved October 5, 2023 – via YouTube.
  3. ^ Humboldt State University (May 12, 2018). College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences – HSU Commencement 2018 (Livestream). Event occurs at 1:59:51. Archived from the original on March 15, 2022. Retrieved March 15, 2022 – via YouTube.
  4. ^ Vaush on His Experience Being Autistic and ADHD (Video). The Human Happy Hour. April 6, 2022. Archived from the original on January 31, 2023. Retrieved January 31, 2023 – via YouTube.
  5. ^ a b Jones, Owen (July 16, 2021). Vaush meets Owen Jones: US imperialism and the left. Archived from the original on September 5, 2021. Retrieved July 22, 2021 – via YouTube.
  6. ^ Kochinski, Ian (March 5, 2021). Addressing The Tactical Controversy (Video). Event occurs at 3:10 & 3:56. Archived from the original on February 9, 2022. Retrieved February 9, 2022 – via YouTube.
  7. ^ Kochinski, Ian (December 13, 2022). Why Does This Keep Happening To Shoe 0n Head? (Video). Event occurs at 35:25 & 36:14. Archived from the original on December 13, 2022. Retrieved April 7, 2022 – via YouTube.
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