Swedish YouTube star PewDiePie - real name Felix Kjellberg - has responded to fallout from a video he posted making fun of tasking website 'Fiverr' in which he paid for two users in India to dance and hold a sign reading "death to all Jews".
“My intention was just to show how stupid the website is and how far you can push it by paying five dollars,” said the YouTube star, who's earned millions off the platform.
"I am sorry for the words that I used, as I know they offended people, and I admit that the joke itself went too far,” Kjellberg said.
Related Reading:
YouTube, Disney scrap PewDiePie over 'anti-Semitic' videos
Amid the fallout from a which described numerous videos as anti-Semitic, both Disney and YouTube cut business ties with the provocative internet personality.
"Although Felix has created a following by being provocative and irreverent, he clearly went too far in this case, and the resulting videos are inappropriate," a Maker Studios spokeswoman told the Wall Street Journal.
PewDiePie was among the most followed stars on YouTube, and his videos have been watched collectively more 14 billion times.
“I understand that these things have consequences," Kjellberg said, reiterating that he still believed it's possible to joke about anything, but that there was a right way and a "not so right way" to joke about things.
“It’s something that I’m going to keep in mind moving forward,” the self-described rookie comedian said.
Related Reading:
The backlash following YouTube star PewDiePie
Kjellberg slammed the Wall Street Journal and railed against other media outlets for taking him out of context in accusations of anti-semitism.
“I am sorry, I didn’t think they would actually do it,” Kjellberg said in the original controversial video, affirming that he wasn’t anti-Semitic.
“I don’t feel too good, I don’t feel too proud of this […] don’t get the wrong idea.”
In the fallout from the video, the two men - known as 'Funny Guys' on Fiverr - were suspended from the 'cash for tasks' website.
A screenshot from PewDiePie's original video on YouTube. Source: PewDiePie / YouTube
“My kind apologies to the Jewish people – extremely sorry for the mistakes we have made in the video,” the men said in a video.
“Please forgive us, we really don’t know what the message meant when making the video," they said, in a plea to have their account restored.
For between $6 and $14 the Tamil-speaking men sing, dance and dress up with custom messages for Fiverr users around the world.
Fiverr has since re-instated their account.
