December 14, 2023
Black Twitch Streamer Gains More Views Switching Avatar To A White Man Cartoon
Twitch streamer Just_Relax_Kid experimented with changing his avatar from a Black man to a white man, significantly increasing views.
Business Insider reported on Dec. 2 that Twitch streamer Just_Relax_Kid, also known as Zach, recently experimented with changing his avatar from a Black man to a white man, significantly increasing views on his channel. Zach, a Twitch creator for nearly nine years with 77,000 followers, usually streams gaming content.
The change immediately impacted his viewership, with his average views per stream surging threefold. Zach expressed surprise at the sudden rise in his view count, acknowledging a comment suggesting it was because he appeared as a white man. Reflecting on the experience, he remarked, “Is this what it feels like to have privilege on Twitch? That shit worked earlier than I thought it would.”
In a video shared on social media platforms, Zach emphasized the substantial increase in viewership after adopting the white avatar. He noted receiving messages from fellow Black creators who had tried similar experiments and observed comparable results.
Despite the experiment’s success in boosting visibility, Zach felt hurt by the realization and emphasized that he didn’t want people to feel shame for being themselves. He received criticism from both Black and white individuals, with some accusing him of exaggerating racism while others believed he was not vocal enough on the issue.
“Honestly, I’m hurt ’cause of all these Black creators who were like, ‘I’m not using my camera anymore. I’m not doing it,’” he told Dexerto. “And they were serious. So, I feel bad because I feel like I’m kind of responsible for that. I don’t want people feeling shame just for being who they are.”
Zach also expressed a sense of betrayal toward Twitch, highlighting that despite being a partnered streamer for almost a decade, he had not received significant recognition or support from the platform. Feeling overlooked, he stated, “I’ve been one of your partnered streamers for almost a decade, and I’ve never gotten any love or nothing from Twitch ever.” Then he added, “Like, not a single thing besides Black History Month. Like, nothing. It was wild to me, and I was like, ‘You know what, I probably won’t show my camera anymore.'”