
Twitch Streamer Mizkif Apologizes For ‘Insensitive’ Comeback
Matthew “Mizkif” Rinaudo, the embattled Twitch streamer who was suspended from gaming group One True King (OTK) final September amid allegations that he helped cowl up an alleged sexual assault, has apologized for the “insensitive” and “tone-deaf” conduct he displayed in a broadcast from early October, shortly after his suspension. The apology follows his reinstatement in OTK, which lifted the suspension final week. Mizkif promised he would “be higher and study from [the] state of affairs,” particularly concerning severe subjects of sexual assault and harassment, apologizing particularly to individuals who have skilled them.
If you happen to’ve been out of the loop, Mizkif was accused of covering up an alleged sexual assault perpetrated by his buddy and fellow streamer, CrazySlick. OTK, the Austin-based gaming org he helped co-found in October 2020, positioned Mizkif on depart till a third-party authorized agency may end its investigation into his supposed involvement within the severe allegations. That was again in September, at which level Mizkif just about disappeared from the web, barely posting and hardly streaming. Nonetheless, Mizkif hosted a comeback livestream (which has since been deleted) in early October, the place he spent a lot of the time watching HasanAbi and xQc react to his stream, taking part in Tremendous Mario 64, and reacting to an old skit satirizing sexual harassment corporate training videos. To place it mildly, it appeared as if Mizkif wasn’t taking the elephant within the room severely. As such, his dealing with of the state of affairs has landed him in scorching water but once more.
OTK took to Twitter on December 31 to submit an replace on Mizkif’s state of affairs. The org mentioned that after third-party regulation agency Jackson Walker LLP “didn’t discover direct proof that Mizkif tried to attenuate or cowl up sexual assault as alleged,” his membership standing has been reinstated. Nonetheless, his “callous disregard in direction of the severity of sexual misconduct and racial prejudice,” particularly the way in which Mizkif “demonstrated a scarcity of empathy and ignorance in direction of the seriousness of the state of affairs” in his early October comeback stream, was justification sufficient for OTK to “droop Mizkif from his board duties efficient instantly.” OTK has additionally positioned Mizkif on “monitored probation” till he’s able to displaying his character development.
“OTK stands firmly in opposition to sexual harassment, assault, and bigotry of all varieties, and is dedicated to upholding its core values of equality, respect, and inclusivity,” the org mentioned. “We recognize the assist of our group all through this course of and can proceed working tirelessly to make sure our group is one you might be pleased with.”
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In an apology video uploaded on January 2, Mizkif said he wanted to address his “embarrassing comeback stream,” calling his behavior “absolutely unacceptable.”
“I want to apologize to everybody but especially victims of sexual assault,” Mizkif said in the incredibly short video. “The way I behaved was horrible, and I will be better and I will learn from this situation. I want to be better for not only myself but for my audience. I want my influence on this world to be positive, and I don’t want anybody to deem the way I acted in that first stream as acceptable or OK because it was not. […] I’m sorry for such a protracted look ahead to a response. If you happen to had been offended with me, I fully perceive. However I completely do love this job, I really like streaming, and I hope you guys stick alongside.”
Mizkif has since type of returned to livestreaming on Twitch, with his latest broadcast on January 2 pulling in nearly 600,000 viewers. He opened the stream by directing chatters to his YouTube channel the place the apology video lives, saying that every thing’s been addressed there earlier than transferring on to his typical content material: reacting to some movies, speaking together with his viewers, and taking part in Mario Occasion Superstars with a couple of mates.
All of this comes as OTK appears to be within the midst of its personal reckoning, as one of many co-founders, Wealthy Campbell, was accused of sexual assault in December and immediately resigned from his place on the group. Campbell has remained silent because the allegations got here to mild, only posting that he’ll “share [his] facet of the story” however wants time to gather his ideas on every thing that’s taking place.
Kotaku reached out to Campbell, Mizkif, OTK, and Jackson Walker LLP for remark however has but to obtain a reply.