- [Philip] One of the biggest YouTubers
in the world's employees are protesting him.
There's more to talk about with the Chinese spy balloon.
Reporters are getting arrested, people are getting sued.
I couldn't be troubled to take a shower this morning.
We're gonna talk about all of that and so much more
on today's brand new Philip DeFranco show.
So buckle up, hit that like button,
and let's just jump into it.
One of the biggest YouTubers and really, I mean,
he's established on so many platforms
in a massive, massive way is being protested
by his own actors right now.
So if you're not familiar, this is Dhar Mann.
He's an entrepreneur and the head of Dhar Mann Studios.
On YouTube alone, his main channel's
got 18 million subscribers.
The videos get millions and millions of views each,
and those videos mostly tell scripted stories
with moral lessons or inspirational themes.
You'll often see other creators reacting to the videos
'cause many of them are like just over the top
and hammy and in your face.
But now, many of the actors are protesting with one,
Colin Borden explaining on TikTok.
- One of the main issues is that not a single actor
that works at Dhar Mann Studios can afford rent.
- And saying that a lot of the actors
across the board feel this way, they feel mistreated
but it took a while to get this big movement going.
- Trouble is there is a culture at the studio
of if you talk, you're out.
- So they all decided to just join together.
They sent a letter to Dhar Mann addressing
some of their issues, saying they wanna sit down
and have a conversation about this.
And it said that a meeting was eventually set up
with HR but it kept getting pushed back over and over again.
And when it finally happened,
Dhar Mann wasn't actually present.
So the actors then walked outta the meeting,
saying that's not what they wanted.
"Dhar Mann signs our contracts, we want him here.
Schedule one with him."
But saying that they were eventually told
that meeting just would not happen.
- So that's why we're here right now
because all we wanted to do was sit down
and have the conversation with our boss.
That didn't happen.
We were told explicitly that there will not be any meetings.
- Another actor Dylan Harris also sharing similar claims
saying that he was actually quite afraid to post his video
or saying that acting is his dream job
and that he feels lucky to be paid to act in any capacity
but there are issues at the studio.
- Dhar Mann has not been scaling his actor's pay
as he has become a multi, multi multimillionaire.
The money that he gives us, albeit isn't a lot,
but it was enough for me to be afraid to stand up to him.
It's better than door dashing every day,
which is what I had been doing.
And he's aware of that.
- With all this saying that he thinks Dhar Mann
should practice what he preaches in his videos.
Also in the comments of another video saying
that the studio has a big brother culture.
We've also seen footage of the protest popping up online
with actors holding posters saying
why they're outside the studio protesting.
- I'm protesting, the man never talks to anyone.
He silently fires people
and he doesn't pay anyone what they're worth.
- Because everything that is done in the darkness
should be brought to the light.
- Because we can't be taken advantage like this.
- [Philip] And there are other videos as well,
including one where an actor says
someone was fired over medical conditions.
You also had other creators speaking out
like Ethan Klein actually providing some insight here
saying his brother-in-law is a teacher who does
one-on-one instruction programs
and one of his students was in Dhar Mann videos,
and saying that his brother-in-law was shocked
at how little the student was making.
- He has to drive super far,
he pays for his own transportation, he pays a minimum wage.
There's no like support for him being like an underage,
he's under 18, but he basically almost loses money
going there and coming back, paying for his transportation.
He pays him like less than 100 bucks for a day's rate.
- And later they were saying the day
is gonna be 10 to 12 hours long.
- It's so easy to exploit these workers and it sounds
like that's exactly what he's doing.
And you know, it really just underlies a need
for some kind of regulation or unions
for child actors and actors like in Dhar Mann's (bleep).
- I guess it should be said SAG does have a digital contract
for like, for content on YouTube and stuff,
but I think it's barely ever used.
- Right there referring to the Screen Actors Guild,
a major union for actors and they do
actually have new media contracts and policies,
though we would've no way of knowing
if Dhar Mann Productions or actors are eligible
or in what capacity since there are a lot of rules
and guidelines about what or who does and doesn't qualify.
But also this is kind of just something worth noting
if anyone watching this is in the space
and wants to look into it.
You also had other creators
like MoistCr1TiKaL responding to the situation.
- This is a guy that could easily afford
to pay his actors well and I would've expected him
to do that because I always got the impression
that he was just like a genuinely good guy
who just wanted to tell basic positive messages.
But according to all the actors,
he's a wolf in sheep's clothing, which is extremely sad.
And I. - Now with all
that said as far as his part, Dhar Mann has responded
to all of this in a community post
saying, "For background we did arrange an in-person
hour long meeting with actor representatives
and two of our most senior leaders,
including our head of production in hopes
of understanding concerns prior to any protests."
And saying, "During that meeting, the actor representatives
refused to communicate any concerns and instead walked out."
Also claiming that the actors are paid well
with extras making $18 per hour
and speaking role actors making between 33 to $44 per hour
and saying, "Actors, by nature work
for many different production companies.
We offer project-based opportunities that vary
from a few hours long to a few days.
We do not offer full-time positions as we try to spread
around opportunities and show a wide range of faces.
All details including pay rate and length
of the production are specified in the offer letter.
And the actor has the freedom to accept
or decline the project."
And with this saying that the studio encourages feedback
and has multiple forums for actors
to deliver it even anonymously if they choose so.
But yeah, ultimately that's where we are with this story.
It was heavily requested, so I wanna make
sure we covered it and so now,
I'll pass the question off to you.
What are your thoughts here?
And then NFL or a bunch of penny pinching
disability discriminating assholes?
Or rather, that's what this new lawsuit alleges,
though not in those specific words.
But we've known for a long time how football batters
the bodies and brains of the young men who play the sport
for America's entertainment.
So you'd think that the least that the league could do
for them once they retire is to help them get
the medical care that they need for their injuries, right?
Well, according to a lawsuit filed by 10 former players
against the NFL's benefits plan as well as the plan's board
of trustees and commissioner Roger Goodell,
they've been wrongfully denied disability benefits.
They allege the plan, "Routinely steers players
to financially biased doctors, some of whom collect
hundreds of thousands of dollars per year
from the plan itself and they fail to find players
are disabled at exceedingly high rates."
And then when they appeal the denied claims,
allegedly the board overly relies
on the opinions of those same doctors
and inaccurate case summaries from its law firm.
And so when that doesn't work,
they go to the federal courts.
But they say that the plan's lawyers
show a, "disturbing pattern of illogical
and inconsistent interpretations of their own rules
in an effort to justify denying disability claims."
And a key thing, these are not just allegations,
judges have ruled in six separate lawsuits of the plan,
wrongly denied claims as well as three cases
in which judges identified problems
in how the plan reviewed claims.
So now the plaintiffs are seeking class action status
on behalf of thousands of players
who have dealt with the plan.
And one of the attorneys leading the suit also worked
on the 2012 class action case against the NFL
for failing to protect players from concussions.
with a settlement there which is still ongoing
having paid out over a billion dollars
to retirees suffering from dementia
and other brain diseases linked to repetitive head trauma.
You know, something to keep in mind
as we all watch the Super Bowl this weekend.
It feels like that's a constant in our society
or maybe even just our world.
We pay a lot of attention and focus
on and care about people when they're right
in front of us doing the thing that brings us joy
or in other instances, keeps us safe.
But then when they're done,
they're often treated like outta sight, outta mind.
And then what is art?
That's the question a jury is being asked
with a recent lawsuit regarding
the iconic Birkin bags and NFTs.
Right, so Hermes has won their lawsuit
against artist Mason Rothschild yesterday.
They sued him for the creation of MetaBirkins NFTs
with images of Birkins decorated in wild ways.
Like some had mammoth tusks, one was green and shaggy
like the Grinch, another had Van Gogh's Starry Night on it.
For those that don't know, Birkin bags,
they're rich people shit.
They're handmade, highly coveted.
They cost tens of thousands of dollars.
You also can't go into a store and just buy one direct.
You gotta jump through a bunch of rich people hoop shit.
We're talking about bags where a recent one
sold at auction for over $200,000.
So the lawsuit they filed claimed that MetaBirkins
were diluting their trademark and that customers might
be misled into buying the NFT rather than the real bag.
But you had Rothschild's team arguing,
"No, the NFTs are art," so they're protected
by the First Amendment.
They're saying that Birkin is a symbol of wealth and status,
making it easy for artists to use
as a metaphor for consumers.
And on another front, Rothschild's team argued
whether customers with the means to purchase a Birkin bag
would actually be misled by Rothschild's NFTs.
The key thing here being that Rothschild
was selling the MetaBirkins for around $450 each
and reportedly reached about $1.1 million in sales.
And Hermes' legal team also claimed
that Rothschild publicized the cease and desist letter
that the company sent in and an effort
to drive more interest in the NFTs.
But the jury ultimately finding that the artist did infringe
on the trademark and awarded them $133,000 in damages
and arguably an even bigger thing here is they also found
that the NFTs are not protected under the First Amendment
which is why Rothschild and his lawyer
called this a serious loss and saying,
"What happened today was wrong,"
saying this was a big win for big business
and a major loss for artists.
And all of this happening as trademark rights
are about to be tested again soon
in the case between Jack Daniels and VIP products,
where they're the brand that made dog toys
with a similar design to the whiskey bottles.
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And then, so this is a reporter in Ohio, Evan Lambert.
who is just covering a news conference about a train
derailment that led to a controlled release of toxic fumes.
The conference was supposed to start at 3:00 PM
but was delayed until five and that's when Lambert
was scheduled for a live shot for News Nation.
the cable channel he works for.
So Lambert does the live shot, he does it
in the back of the room, out of the way the podium.
And he reported quickly, also wrapping up
when he noticed that Governor Mike DeWine was speaking.
But that did not stop the police from coming up to him.
And according to News Nation, police told Lambert
that he was, "Out of line for talking
while the governor was speaking."
With Lambert not only then being led outta the room
after a discussion but then placed on the ground
and arrested, with the police then charging him
with criminal trespass and disorderly conduct.
He actually had to spend time in jail,
though there while Lambert was meant to stay the night
to be arraigned the following morning,
the county jail reportedly fielded countless calls
asking why Lambert couldn't be released that night.
And if the goal of the cops here was to get this guy
to stop talking, they have failed
because when he was released from jail,
he did an interview broadcast moments
after he walked out of the building.
- No journalist expects to be arrested
when you're doing your job.
- And what's interesting is that while a lot of people
aren't happy about Lambert's arrest,
among those is the governor, with DeWine quick to comment
to other reporters following the incident saying
that he's always allowed the press to speak
with viewers live during his speeches.
- If that someone was stopped from doing that,
or told they could not do that, that was wrong
and it was nothing that I authorized
and certainly it would be something
that I would not want to see happen.
- And Lambert's coworkers' royally pissed
with his boss saying in an interview,
"I'm infuriated, I'm outraged.
I don't believe this should happen anywhere in America.
It shocks me that law enforcement is that disdainful
of the right of the press to report on the activities,
comments, and policies of public officials,
especially in a crisis."
With News Nation also mentioning
that Lambert's reporting was done quietly,
despite the officer's claims.
Though as far as the charges against Lambert,
they're still there with a local sheriff telling CNN,
"I see no reason why the charges would be dropped
but that's in the Prosecutor's office hands at this point."
And then China's definitely lying.
And to be specific, 'cause that statement could really apply
to just any number of things.
But what I'm talking about here is the pretty fucking wild
new information we have on the infamous Chinese balloon,
which of course was something we put a ton of videos out on.
But TLDR, it was a big ass balloon that belonged
to China floating across the US.
The US officials saying it was a surveillance balloon
in that it violated US sovereignty and international law.
China though insisted, "Hey, this is just
a civilian weather balloon.
The US is overreacting.
Why'd you use military force against
our definitely not a spy balloon balloon?"
But you know, because it's China, we know it's bullshit.
With today, State Department officials confirming
that the balloon was capable of gathering
electronic communications and, "was part of a fleet
of surveillance balloons that have flown
over more than 40 countries and five continents."
Department officials saying that,
American U2 surveillance planes were able to capture images
of the balloon while it was still in the air.
And those images determined, "that the balloon's equipment
was clearly for intelligence surveillance and inconsistent
with the equipment on board weather balloons."
And specifically they said that the balloon had,
"Multiple antennas that were likely capable of collecting
and geo-locating communications," as well as,
"Solar panels large enough to produce the requisite power
to operate multiple active intelligence collection sensors."
The agency also saying, "These kinds of activities
are often undertaken at the direction
of the People's Liberation Army."
And adding that the government, "is confident
that the balloon manufacturer has a direct relationship
with China's military and is an approved vendor of the PLA,"
this according to an official procurement portal
for the army, also notably adding that,
"the company advertises balloon products
on its website and hosts videos from past flights,
which appear to have overflown at least US airspace
and airspace of other countries."
Now, as far as how China has responded to this,
they are still continuing to lie.
"During a news conference on Thursday,
the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson
said she was, 'not aware of the balloons being part
of a fleet as the US believes.'"
And even saying, "I think this may be part
of the US' information warfare against China."
But as with the declassification of this most
recent information, US officials have made it clear
that they intend to keep providing more intel to the public
with the State Department saying today that it'll look
into broader efforts to expose
and address Chinese surveillance that poses quote,
"a threat to our national security
and to our allies and partners."
And this is one of the very few unifying topics
in America right now, and that may be best exemplified
with the House voting today 419 to 0
to approve a resolution condemning
the Chinese Communist Party's use of the balloon,
declaring the situation, "A brazen violation
of United States sovereignty."
And then the Brazilian government is fighting
to stop a genocide right now.
And at the heart of all this
is one extremely valuable mineral, gold.
Right, the country's attention is focused
on the largest indigenous reserve in the Amazon rainforest,
home to the Yanomami people.
There's less than 30,000 of them left
and almost as many of the group killing them off
with some 20,000 gold miners
illegally encroaching on their land.
Get some background here, the miners began invading
this territory back in the 1970s and '80s
with the encouragement of the military dictatorship.
But then in the '90s, tens of thousands of miners
were removed from the land that a supposedly protected area
was created that exists to this day.
But with the 2018 election of far right
President Jair Bolsonaro, miners again launched
an all-out assault on Yanomami land
with them feeling emboldened
by the president's aggressive rhetoric
and weakened environmental protections.
So all this time they've been polluting the water,
ravaging the forest, and even shooting
at the indigenous people with automatic weapons,
with photos spreading of dozens
of emaciated Yanomami children flown to hospitals
for malnutrition and malaria, shocking many Brazilians.
I mean you saw at least 570 kids reportedly dying
of curable diseases during Bolsonaro's administration,
many of these from drinking water poisoned by mercury,
which is linked to gold mining.
And although the mining there is technically illegal,
miners have been able to elude the authorities
which isn't hard to do when the government
supports the activity anyway.
With the guardian discovering a 75 mile
road to chaos carved outta the jungle last year
to smuggle excavators in, bring heavy machinery
never before seen on the reserve,
and taking the mining operation to a whole nother level.
But all that said, when left wing president Lula
took office last month, he hit the brakes hard,
saying, "More than a humanitarian crisis,
what I saw in Roraima was genocide,
a premeditated crime against the Yanomami,
committed by a government insensitive to suffering,"
and adding, "I came here to say we are going
to treat our indigenous people as human beings."
And with all of this, he has created a new ministry
for indigenous peoples, declared a medical emergency,
and began airdropping food
and medical supplies in the reserve.
And now this week the government launched
an operation to remove all of the illegal miners
from the area with Special Forces Environmental Operatives
swooping in by the dozen.
And so far they've torched houses, a plane,
a helicopter, a bulldozer, also seizing boats and weapons
but it's not all over because with the sheer number
of miners hiding all over the place,
it could take months to get 'em out.
And that is where today's show ends.
As always, thank you for watching
and being a part of these daily dives into the news.
My name's Philip DeFranco, you've just been filled in.
I love yo faces and I'll see you next time.