- 'Sup, you beautiful bastards.
Welcome back to "The Philip DeFranco Show."
This is the third show of the year
and we got a lot of news to talk about today.
We've got YouTube staple MatPat retiring,
which some are calling a troubling trend.
We've got the Hunter Biden chaos on Capitol Hill.
Ecuadorian gangs are going buck wild,
taking over live TV stations,
gang leaders escaping and there's even more.
So buckle up, hit that Like button,
and let's just jump into it.
And the first thing that we're gonna talk about today
is the retirement of YouTube staple MatPat.
And even if you're not personally familiar with him,
this is an important story because it does feel
like it's becoming part of a growing trend.
He's behind the 18.5 million subscriber
The Game Theorists channel,
and that's in addition to three other
massively successful channels in different verticals.
Film Theorists, Food Theorists, and The Style Theorists.
And if you randomly hear an iPad kid
over the next few days crying,
it's probably connected to the video
that got released yesterday,
with Matt uploading a video titled "Goodbye Internet,"
announcing that his last day hosting "Game Theorists"
will be in March.
And in it, saying that he's gonna miss doing this,
but also adding that he and his wife, Steph,
who runs things with him, always knew this time would come.
- We knew that we couldn't do this forever.
We knew that honestly, we didn't want to do this forever.
For as much as I love you and I love overthinking things
and I love theorizing, I don't love late nights.
I don't love the fact that Steph and I
have been work-first for over a decade.
- With Matt also going on to say,
he wants to be able to turn off
the business side of his brain,
actually go to dinner with a friend and not talk noob.
Nope, that was me, oh no.
He wants to be able to go to a dinner with a friend
and not be thinking about business.
To be able to enjoy things,
like it could be a movie or a game and not think,
"How can I turn this into content?"
To be able to spend more time with his kid
because you never get that time back.
Though, notably, he then goes on in the end of the video
to detail other things that he'll end up working on.
It's just that it's more behind the scenes,
in the background, working with creative directors,
popping up on just a few occasions.
But the big thing, and it's always the risky thing,
is that he is gonna be passing the big hosting duties off.
- It's not going to one person, but rather four.
I would not wish my schedule on anyone.
Like, sure, I'm willing to not sleep
for the last 13 years of my life,
but I feel like, as Old Man YouTube passing this along
to the next generation,
I should probably do my best
to try and make it more sustainable for them.
- So in response to this, as expected,
fans were shocked, they were devastated.
Also, many people expressing their thanks
for all the years of content and entertainment
for the community,
for people feeling like they have a place.
But what I will say with this is,
as shocking as this news was for a lot of people,
it's really not that shocking.
Matt's video actually follows a ton of other creators
who have announced similar things.
Even referenced the likes of Tom Scott,
who posted a video last week.
With Tom there saying,
after a decade of doing this, he's taken a step back,
and maybe he will come back, maybe he won't.
- A dream job is still a job,
and it's a job that keeps getting bigger
and more complicated and I'm so tired!
There's nothing in my life right now except work.
- Also looking into it, in addition to the video,
he spoke to The Guardian,
with him saying there he only barely avoided burnout.
According to changes on YouTube as a platform impacting us.
Especially as there's been this whole new emphasis
on short-form content.
It's the big competition with TikTok.
And Tom's saying with that,
"It feels like a lot of people
who've been making long-form videos have recently announced,
not retirements, but reductions, step-backs."
Saying, "Everyone I know is noticing
their views slowly falling
and therefore their ad revenue reducing.
Between the decline in long-form viewers,
the threat from junk zero-effort, generative AI channels
that are only going to get better,
and the sheer mass of competing video options,
I think it's gonna be a difficult few years."
And again, his words are true.
He is just one of a bunch
of other notable big creators that have stepped back.
And as far as my takeaway with all this,
I absolutely get all of it.
Every single aspect.
One, while the reception to MatPat's video
is overwhelmingly positive,
I saw some people clowning on him because he was crying.
My reaction to that is,
"How the hell do you not get emotional?"
I can't speak for Matt,
as one of the few old-school creators
still on this platform, I get it.
In two years, in 2026,
I will have been on this platform for 20 years.
That's not only half of my life, it is my whole adult life.
And when I started, like a lot of people early on,
we couldn't even make money.
Something either inspired us or made us happy
or made us angry and we were like,
"Blah, I'm gonna throw this on the internet."
And all of a sudden we had this community
and we grew that community together.
And it's part of the reason why,
especially I think for a lot of us old schoolers,
there's somewhat of a parasocial connection
with a lot of people.
So when you take that connection,
or really I don't see how you do anything for that long
and then you change it up and not get emotional.
Also, regarding burnout and wanting work-life balance,
that's not unique to just online creators,
but for people who are self-employed,
they're the entrepreneurs, they run companies,
99.9% of the stress and problems in your life
are your own fault.
You have complete control over that.
I'm the one forcing myself
to work this number of hours per week.
I'm the one who has forced myself
to shoot through being sick the past three days.
Whereas people that work for me, rightly so,
can take that time off.
It becomes very easy to push yourself to an unhealthy place
because you are incentivized and rewarded for it.
And at the same time, in a lot of places,
you're penalized for taking a break.
And so whether it be a number of things,
a fear of failure that's just so ingrained in us
that success just equals more, more, more.
You see a number of creators over the years
just implode and then disappear.
Or the unfortunate thing is, I feel like,
I dunno if it's become more manageable,
but a lot of creators that you're just like,
"Oh, I love their content,
coming out with videos every one to three years saying.
"I'm immensely sad, and it is directly connected
to the thing that I'm putting out on this platform."
And so I personally love and respect creators
being open about this and having the guts to make a change.
'Cause change is scary, whether you're leaving completely,
you're taking a massive break or you're replacing yourself.
Because while the people replacing Matt,
they've written, they have very close connections.
You never know how that swaps gonna go.
You never know how any change is gonna go.
But really in the coming weeks and months,
I would not be surprised if we saw
a lot more people coming out with videos like this.
But for the reasons Matt talked about in his video,
the ones that I'm talking about here
and the others that Tom expanded on
regarding the platform's changing.
Especially with the astronomical rise
of the low to no-effort faceless channels.
And then there's just the content thieves.
I saw someone unironically make
a video the other day where they were like,
"Hey, you wanna be big on TikTok and make some money?"
And they just showed themselves stealing a joke
from a comedy series and then also stealing gameplay footage
and pairing it and uploading it.
And I was watching it and I was like,
"Wait, the secret is just theft."
But they're saying it's transformative
because they're stealing two things
and playing them at the same time.
It makes you wonder what the hell is happening.
But with all that said, I'd love to know your thoughts
on this whole situation, the MatPat announcement,
everything we talked about.
Let me know what you're feeling
in those comments down below.
And then things are crazy in Ecuador right now.
The country's gangs promising all out war
after the president declared a state of emergency
to neutralize them.
And that decision, notably,
was made after one of the most notorious
drug lords in the world
managed to escape from a decades-long imprisonment.
And what's really concerning
is that the gangs right now are like,
"The enemy of my enemy is my friend."
They're looking like they're putting their differences aside
to fight the government's decision to go after them.
And they've got no issue resorting to extreme violence.
With some of the biggest examples
being these large-scale prison riots all over the country,
you've got a large number of guards being taken hostage.
In one case they had a guard reading a message at gunpoint
saying, "You declared war, you will get war."
Saying, "You declared a state of emergency.
We declare police, civilians and soldiers
to be the spoils of war."
And then there was also what happened
at this major TV station.
You had hooded and armed gunman bursting in
on national television while they were live on air.
And they held everyone hostage.
They forced everyone to the ground,
you could hear the presenters saying,
"Don't shoot, please don't shoot."
Within 15 minutes later, the feed cutting out.
But the good news there
is that no innocent people were killed,
although one guy did get shot in the leg
and another had their arm broken.
But ultimately security forces
managed to get in and arrest the people that did this.
But I mean, on top of all that, I mean you have the gangs
setting off explosives all over the country.
And this is the country's trying to mobilize
thousands of officers and military
to hunt down the drug lord.
And you have newly-elected president, Daniel Noboa,
saying that the country was in a state
of internal armed conflict.
And that wording there is very important
'cause it specifically gives the authorities there
the ability to circumvent many civil rights
and allows them to directly use
the military for law enforcement.
So all of this, it's not just gonna be a test for Noboa,
but by the way, is the country's youngest ever president,
but also for democracy as a whole in Ecuador.
And while anytime a government
starts suspending civil rights, it's seen as a red flag,
you have others saying extreme situations
require extreme solutions,
arguing that the country's been facing pressure
for years regarding gang violence, undermining institutions
with bribes and violence.
About reaching its peak last year
when a popular presidential candidate
was assassinated by a gang.
But also what's wild and tragic about this
is how quickly Ecuador went downhill.
'Cause if you're not familiar, for decades
it's been seen as one of the safest countries
in Latin America, but ever since 2018,
the murder rate has skyrocketed eightfold
and it's now one of the highest in the area.
So it's not like all of this is something
that people there are used to.
And this doesn't just affect Ecuador.
If things get much worse, there's gonna be
a lot of people leaving the country.
Especially after people like the editor in chief
for one of the biggest news stations
told the Associated Press,
"Everything has collapsed.
All I know is that it's time to leave this country
and go very far away."
But all of this is still developing.
Our eyes are on it, to stay in the loop,
make sure you're subscribed, and in the meantime especially,
if you have connections to Ecuador,
would love to hear from you in those comments down below.
And then from that we're gonna talk about more news.
But I gotta take a second real quick to pay some bills
because I can't believe that it's been a year
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Even through the holiday season,
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Through travel, all the festivities,
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Me, you, we can't always stick to a routine,
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And then poor kids and kids with disabilities,
they don't need money for food over summer break.
'cause America's kids are already too fat.
That is literally an argument
a Republican governor just made.
With that connected to her decision
to reject a federally-funded program
to supply summer food assistance to hungry kids.
'Cause it's part of the 2022 budget,
Congress created a program that's expected
to provide $2.5 billion in relief to 21 million kids.
And it starts in June.
With that, families being given $120 per kid
to get food at grocery stores, farmer markets,
other approved retailers.
We're talking about households
with incomes below the poverty level,
where people are already getting school lunches for free
or at a reduced price.
And supporters of this argue, this is very important.
A safety net for our most vulnerable kids.
It shouldn't just disappear
'cause they're not also learning that day.
But according to the agriculture department,
15 different Republican governors have rejected the aid.
Well they did so for a number of reasons.
The most aggressively stupid one
was hungry kids are already too fat.
Which I will say, I know we're not supposed
to judge a book by its cover,
but every photo that I have seen of this woman
screams toxic almond mom.
Like when you come home for Thanksgiving,
she gives you a hug and then pinches you side.
And while I agree with Iowa Governor, Kim Reynolds,
that childhood obesity in America has become an epidemic.
She's specifically using that
to justify opting out of this program.
Also, other Republicans have given different excuses.
Nebraska Governor Jim Pillen, for example,
he said the assistance was, "Unnecessary
and is not adequate to meeting the needs of children.
Handing out money is not enough to meet kids' needs,
they need much more."
"Which is why I will give them nothing.
Wait, what? Nothing is less than something?
Oh God, my argument has fallen apart."
But also beyond being comically dumb at face value,
experts say that the governors who are declining this aid,
they are actively hurting vulnerable, hungry kids in need.
And that impact can be devastating.
And remember that all of this is happening
as food insecurity has increased significantly.
We've had the rising cost of food.
You got pandemic-era programs winding down.
Hell in God's favorite country,
nearly one in every five households
lacked enough food in 2022.
And in these states where republicans have rejected
the federal summer aid, that could get a lot worse.
Take a look at Oklahoma, for example.
Where more than 350,000 American children
have been receiving food relief over the last four summers.
But that funding from pandemic programs,
it dries up this summer.
And the state's Republican governor
has opted out of the new federal program,
and they haven't talked about any other replacements.
Which has left nonprofits like food banks scrambling.
You have experts estimating that 300,000 kids
won't have access to financial food benefits
when school lets out.
And that's something that we're gonna likely see
in other states that have declined this aid.
Even if they have existing onsite meal programs,
because also, according to the USDA,
those sites are hard to access for many families,
especially in rural areas.
So we end up with a situation
where only about one in six kids
who are eligible, can actually make it
to those locations due to transportation issues.
And experts also focusing on Reynolds
and Pillen saying they're just plain wrong.
With studies of pilot programs
showing that summer grocery aid decrease
kids experiencing the most extreme hunger by one third,
while also actually expanding access
to healthier food options.
And Erica Kenney, she's an assistant professor
at Harvard School of Public Health,
she directly refuted Reynolds claim
about kids already being too fat, saying,
"There's no evidence that a program like this
has anything to do with childhood obesity.
It's absolutely true, you can have obesity
and be struggling to get food on the table for your family.
It is not at all true that helping people
who are struggling financially
means they're going to eat more and gain weight."
But ultimately for now, that's where things stand.
And I don't really imagine things changing.
I don't think Kim Reynolds is gonna have
a magical change of heart.
A lot of politicians don't let facts
get in the way of their goals,
but I'm always open to being wrong.
And then the Hunter Biden chaos today was wild.
But before we jump into the dumpster fire,
I gotta give you some background on it.
Today's drama wasn't about Hunter's criminal indictments
relating to his taxes and gun purchase.
Instead, it was about his foreign business dealings
in Ukraine and China, which Republicans alleged
that his father was involved in while Vice President.
Though notably, and the key thing,
so far they have produced no direct evidence
of any corruption on the part of Joe Biden.
You know, that didn't stop them
from launching an impeachment inquiry.
And so as a part of that,
they're saying that Hunter's testimony is crucial.
The House Republicans subpoenaed him
for a closed door deposition last month.
But instead on that day,
Hunter stood outside the Capitol,
saying that he would only testify in public.
Explaining that he feared that the GOP
would selectively leak or misrepresent his testimony
if it was done behind closed doors.
With that, citing past comments
by both Chairman of the House judiciary
and oversight committees that it could take place in public.
But both chairman James Comer and Jim Jordan,
they've insisted, "No, Hunter has to do it closed doors."
So today both committees held hearings
to vote on whether to recommend criminal contempt
of Congress charges against Hunter.
Initially, they kicked off as you'd expect,
Republicans thrown around allegations of corruption
and subpoena defiance.
Democrats then pushing back, calling the hearings a joke,
accusing Republicans of hypocrisy
for ignoring subpoenas themselves
by the January 6th committee.
Jordan, Perry and Biggs defied legal subpoenas.
But then before opening statements even finished,
everything went off the rails at the oversight committee,
because the man himself, Hunter Biden strolled in,
flanked by his attorneys and he planted himself
right in the front row.
With GOP representative Nancy Mace
absolutely flipping her shit.
So much so, it seemingly broke her brain
and she went full Social Justice Warrior.
- My first question is, who bribed Hunter Biden
to be here today?
That's my first question, second question,
you are the epitome of white privilege,
coming into the oversight committee,
spitting in our face, ignoring a congressional subpoena
to be deposed, what are you afraid of?
You have no balls to come up here.
- [Jared Moskowitz] Mr. Chairman point of inquiry.
If the gentlelady wants to hear from Hunter Biden,
we can hear from him right now, Mr. Chairman,
let's take a vote and hear from Hunter Biden.
- I think that Hunter Biden should be arrested
right here, right now, and go straight to jail.
Our nation is founded on the rule of law.
And the premise that the law applies equally
to everyone no matter what your last name is.
- [Speaker] Point of order. Mr. Chairman.
- Then a Democrat, Jared Moskowitz
interrupting her to ask this question.
- I don't know if there's a proper motion, Mr. Chairman,
but I'll make a motion, let's vote,
let's take a vote, who wants to hear
from Hunter right now, today?
Anyone? Come on, who wants to hear from Hunter?
No one, oh, there's one, thank you.
- But to be fair, another Republican
claimed house rules prevented them
from calling up a witness
without giving notice days in advance.
But regardless of him not testifying,
they were willing to go after him.
And the last one up there was Marjorie Taylor Greene.
And she was last because as soon as she got up,
this happened. - Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Excuse me, Hunter, apparently you're afraid of my words.
- [Speaker] Whoa!
Aw.
- I think it's clear and obvious
for everyone watching this hearing today
that Hunter Biden is terrified
of strong conservative Republican women.
- With then Representative Garcia responding to that,
essentially saying there's no reason for Hunter Biden
to stay if the GOP's not gonna let him testify.
And if it's just to allow, of all people, MTG
to throw shit his way.
- I think it's really interesting to hear
the gentlelady from Georgia
speak about Hunter Biden leaving
and she is the person that showed nude photos
of Hunter Biden in this very committee room,
showing dick pics in this committee room of Hunter Biden.
- And AOC then adding onto that.
- The chairman said in front of the country,
several times to Hunter Biden,
"You can show up here in front of the world,
in front of the public."
Hunter Biden took him up on that offer.
He said, "I will show up in public,
I will show up in public."
He showed up here today, he showed up here in the past.
And Mr. Chairman, I know you do your best
with what you've got, but you've got members here
that have submitted falsified evidence to the record.
You have members here that have submitted
and mischaracterized closed-door hearings
and people wanna say back and forth at the end of the day,
it doesn't matter what party it's coming from.
You've got members who've engaged
in revenge porn in this committee.
So it is understandable
why Hunter Biden would want to testify
in front of the public
for the American people to be able to witness
that testimony for themselves.
- But ultimately, that's where we are.
As of recording this, committees are expected
to approve the contempt resolutions,
after which they'll then go
to the full house for a floor vote.
And at that point, if the house votes yes,
it'll be up to the Justice Department
whether to pursue charges,
which for Republicans is very much a win-win.
'Cause either they take on the case or the circus continues
or they don't take on the case
because they don't think it has merit
and Republicans will accuse them of political bias.
So yeah, fun times.
But that is where your Wednesday dive
into the news is gonna end.
But for more news you need to know
that you might've missed this week.
I got you covered right here, you can click or tap to watch
or I got links in the description.
Or if you're all caught up, do not worry
'cause my name is Philip DeFranco,
you've just been filled in.
I love your faces and I'll be
right back here for you tomorrow.