Logan Paul is an influencer, podcaster, and professional wrestler who has found himself – once again – at the center of controversy. A three-part YouTube series by investigative journalist Stephen Findeisen, who known as Coffeezilla on YouTube, delved into Paul’s latest CryptoZoo project and branded the venture a scam. As if things couldn’t get even weirder, less than a month later, a pig named Pearl, which had previously belonged to Paul, was found abandoned by an animal rescue, which Pearl has since taken in.
The double whammy of stories being shared across social media has made Paul the talk of the town on Twitter, TikTok, and other social media platforms. This has led to a chaotic discourse, with other influencers and creators intervening from all angles. Paul has used social media and his own podcast to respond.
Paul first promoted CryptoZoo on his podcast Impulsive in August 2021. He said he’s been working on his “own NFT project” and called it “a really fun game to make money with.” CryptoZoo is a blockchain “game” where players buy an in-game cryptocurrency called $200 to spend on digital eggs that hatch into animals. Eggs could theoretically also be bred, resulting in hybrids that were rare and therefore considered more valuable monetarily.
On December 16, Findeisen published the first part of his three-part series entitled “Investigation of Logan Paul’s biggest scam“, which has more than 7.5 million views. In this video, Findeisen claims the project was a scam and he interviews players who said they never managed to hatch their eggs. In the description of the video, Findeisen writes:
“CryptoZoo was supposed to be a fun blockchain game to make money from… but millions of dollars of investor money later, things are still broken. Coffeezilla investigates why. […] This video is an opinion and should in no way be construed as a statement of fact. Scams, bad business opportunities, and fake gurus are subjective terms that mean different things to different people. I think someone promising $100,000/month for a $2,000 upfront payment is a scam. Others would call it a Napoleon Hill course.”
Findeisen posted Second part and three of the series on the Coffeezilla YouTube channel on December 20th and 23rd. In these videos, Findeisen examines other members of the CryptoZoo team, including lead developer Eddie Ibanez, other developers, and other crypto influencers like Jake the Crypto King. (No relation to Jake Paul, Logan Paul’s influencer brother and fellow podcaster.)
Logan Paul posted a Response video to Coffeezilla on January 4th, which has since been deleted but has been widely circulated across the internet as other YouTubers reposted it. In that video, Paul said he didn’t make any money from CryptoZoo, accused Findeisen of using his name for money and views, and threatened to sue Findeisen. He also spoke about the Coffeezilla video series a consequence of Impulsive podcast.
On Saturday, Findeisen tweeted that Paul called him and “deleted the two replies” and “dropped the lawsuit threats.” Findeisen also shared a screenshot of the CryptoZoo Discord group where Paul said he will “take responsibility, apologize and come up with a plan in the near future”. The CryptoZoo website currently says it is “going through upgrades to the core infrastructure of the ecosystem.” (Polygon has reached out to Logan Paul and Stephen Findeisen and will update the story upon response.)
Logan’s Response: His response was ‘ill-considered and not focused on the real issue’
He will “take responsibility, apologize and come up with a plan”. pic.twitter.com/nI2tyQd28i
— Coffeezilla (@coffeebreak_YT) January 7, 2023
Just as things were starting to settle down, the Paul controversy flared up again on January 10, but for a very different reason. An animal rescue center Gentle Barn posted a TikTok telling the story of a pig named Pearl who was found abandoned in a field next to another deceased pig. Fans recognized Pearl as Paul’s pet pig from his YouTube videos, and the shelter’s TikTok began circulating on social media.
According to TikTok, Gentle Barn was treating Pearl for a life-threatening infection in her uterus and torn ears. “From what we’ve been told, it’s believed that she was originally purchased from a breeder by an influencer,” the TikTok video’s description reads.
It continues: “People often buy ‘mini pigs’ or ‘teacup pigs’ online for clout because they think they’ll stay small. Unfortunately, when they inevitably grow very large and have many unexpected needs, they are discarded. While we don’t know everything she’s been through in her past, we do know that her life is now full of friends, nutritious food, first class care and so much love.” Polygon reached out to Gentle Barn for comment and received no response.
@thegentlebarn Pearl was found alone in a field next to another deceased pig. She came to us with her ears torn and a potentially life-threatening uterine infection that has now healed. She has clearly gone through so much trauma that we cannot imagine, but now she is safe with us at The Gentle Barn. From what we’ve been told, it’s believed that she was originally purchased from a breeder by an influencer. People often buy “mini pigs” or “teacup pigs” for clout online, believing they’ll stay small. Unfortunately, when they inevitably grow very large and have many unexpected needs, they are discarded. While we don’t know everything she’s been through in her past, we do know that her life is now full of friends, nutritious food, top-notch care, and so much love. #pigrescue
#animalrescue story #abandoned animals #pigsoftiktok #livestockrescue #thissoftbarn
Polygon also contacted Logan Paul for comment on Pearl and received the following response:
Logan moved to Puerto Rico and couldn’t take Pearl with him. He responsibly brought her to a fantastic horse ranch where she was well cared for.
Logan found out yesterday that the horse ranch owner had moved and couldn’t keep Pearl. They had apparently taken her to her neighbor’s, and the neighbor was the one who contacted Gentle Barn to take Pearl in.
Unaware of this, Logan was shocked to learn that Pearl had once again been relocated to a person and place he was unaware of.
Logan immediately contacted Gentle Barn when this information surfaced online. He has offered to help financially and hopes to be reunited with Pearl if the rescue organization gives him the opportunity.
Logan is incredibly upset when he learns of Pearl’s condition and is genuinely grateful to Gentle Barn.
Many fans online have expressed skepticism about Paul’s responses to both of these controversies. It remains to be seen how they’ll resolve it, but it’s a reminder that despite Paul’s continued success and massive following, his efforts to rehabilitate his image often yield even more ridiculous results.