Vlog Squad's Scotty Sire apologized for a video attacking a former member for making sexual assault allegations
- Scotty Sire issued an apology after posting a video attempting to debunk claims made against David Dobrik and Jason Nash.
- Sire deleted the original video and wrote that he let "emotion get the best of" him.
- Seth Francois, a former member of Dobrik's vlog squad, claimed that he was sexually assaulted during a Vlog Squad film shoot.
Vlog Squad member Scotty Sire has issued an apology after releasing a video earlier this week defending fellow YouTubers and Squad members David Dobrik and Jason Nash.
Dobrik, known for his popular vlog series and collaborations with brands like SeatGeek and Chipotle, has been accused by several former members of his vlog squad group of creating a toxic environment and forcing them to take part in sketches that made them uncomfortable.
Former member Seth Francois has most recently spoken out about a sketch in which he says he was sexually assaulted as part of a prank. In the sketch, Francois was blindfolded and told he was going to be kissing a woman. Instead, he was set up with Nash, a man, instead. Sire has said he had no prior knowledge of the set-up, while Sire has said Francois knew about the arc of the sketch before-hand.
Scotty Sire uploaded a YouTube video that viewers immediately criticized
On Thursday, Sire uploaded an eight-minute video on his channel titled "hi" discussing the allegations made by former Vlog Squad member Seth Francois.
In the now-deleted video, Sire claimed that the prank against Francois was "all in good fun and he gave permission beforehand." The video also features a clip shared from Dobrik, showing text messages seemingly between him and Francois, who appeared to write that he is "down for another kissing sketch" and "I really don't care as long as u (sic) clout me up."
"I am totally sick of seeing my friend's names get dragged through the mud over false allegations and lies," Sire said in the video. "They haven't said anything because the Vlog Squad doesn't address rumors, lies, and gossip."
Sire's video immediately received criticism and backlash, with commenters saying Sire's evidence didn't prove Dobrik's innocence.
Ethan Klein, part of the H3H3 YouTube channel, has been leading the charge against Dobrik online and was the first to interview Francois. "It seems like David used this guy [Sire] to get the best response," Klein said on the Friday episode of the H3 podcast. "Clearly David knows that Scotty is making this video and it's supplementing him with information." Klein went on to criticize Sire for trying to "assassinate his character," referring to Francois.
YouTuber Trisha Paytas, who has also been highly critical of the Vlog Squad, also criticized Sire's video, calling it "victim blaming."
On Tuesday, Sire posted a note apology on Twitter before taking the video down. Sire said that he let "emotion get the best of" him and "did not expect it to hurt so many people."
Francois and former members of the vlog squad have come forward with their own stories
Francois has claimed that it took him months to come to conceive of the "prank" as sexual assault.
"When I started thinking of the activity as more criminal than a prank, it started helping me understand that they're hiding from me because they can't have the world know that the big secret within the Vlog Squad is probably my sexual abuse," Francois told Insider.
In a podcast clip that's resurfaced from June 2017, Dobrik says that Francois was the "perfect" target and that he was chosen because he's from Compton where homosexuality is "not so accepted."
Over the past month, multiple former Vlog Squad members have shared their stories of their time in Dobrik's group.
"It is kind of like a cult," Nik Keswani, known as Big Nik, told Insider. "For a long time I felt worthless being in those videos, I was like 'Dude, why am I even here? What's the point of my existence?' Because I was just treated like this punching bag."
Neither Dobrik nor Nash has yet to address the situation.