Twitch streamer Steph ‘FerociouslySteph’ Loehr has responded to criticism of her broadcasts and stances on video game features, after being named as one of the councilors on the platform’s new Safety Advisory Council.
The Amazon-owned streaming service announced a new council on May 14 with the intention of promoting more consistent moderation across Twitch. Featuring a number of academics alongside veteran stars, one personality ended up standing out from the pack.
FerciouslySteph has been targeted for not only for her controversial takes on multiplayer gaming, but also for allegedly bypassing the Twitch codes and practices she’s onboard to enforce. Booting up her stream on May 17, the divisive figure has now responded to the recent backlash.
“I’m not going anywhere, I have power. They can’t take it away from me,” she said during her recent stream in response to the ample criticism and complaints that have already surfaced since Twitch’s council announcement.
As Loehr continued her statement, she outlined how “some people should be afraid of [her].” She did not, however, mention any specific names, but there have been a few high-profile stars who weighed in against her already.
“I represent moderation and diversity,” FerciouslySteph continued in her on-stream rebuttal. “I’m gonna come for harmful people. If you’re a really sh***y person, I’m gonna stand up against you. Twitch is endorsing me to do that.”
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However, as her broadcast continued, the newly-announced Twitch councilor began to contradict some of her original statements.
An hour after first making her rebuttal statement, FerciouslySteph admitted she has “literally zero power right now.” On top of that, she’s unclear how much she will have in any capacity moving forward too: “I have no idea how much power I have…at the moment, it’s zero.”
Eight individuals currently sit among the council, though there’s yet to be definitive proof of just how much authority they command.
“I might have more [power] later, but right now all I can tell is that I’m supposed to say what things I think are maybe bad ideas,” the under-fire streamer continued. “Then Twitch will maybe act on them.”
While much was vague, one key point was clarified in her latest stream: “I’m not Twitch staff,” she explained, confirming she is a separate and independent entity to the streaming platform she’s now been named an advisor for.