H3H3Productions’ Ethan Klein has hit out at YouTube for demonetizing the latest episode of the H3 Podcast, which featured a long-awaited interview with Papa John’s founder John Schnatter.
For fans of YouTube, Ethan and Hila Klein are an instantly recognizable couple, with a legendary career on the site that has seen them roast, criticize, and make jokes about fellow content creators, trends, or drama that has hit the site and the famous faces who make a living from the platform.
Long-time viewers will have heard Ethan say “Papa Bless” thousands of times across various channels, all a direct reference to John Schnatter, who founded Papa John’s Pizza. Eight years since the joke began, the former CEO of the company finally appeared on an episode of the H3 Podcast, but Klein has been left frustrated with YouTube’s actions following the release of the episode.
Since releasing the 174th episode of his podcast on Monday, February 10, the episode featuring Papa John himself has already amassed over 650,000 views, an incredible number considering the video has only been live for around 24 hours.
It appears that it won’t be appearing on YouTube‘s “Trending” tab any time soon though, which is where videos that have quickly gained popularity on the platform appear, allowing users to see what others are watching and enjoying on the site.
In a tweet posted early on Tuesday, February 11, Klein complained that not only had they removed it from the Trending tab but that he would also not be making any earnings from the podcast, writing: “Shout out to YouTube for demonetizing [the] Papa John interview and removing it from trending.”
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Shout out to @TeamYouTube for demonetizing Papa John interview and removing it from trending
— Ethan Klein (@h3h3productions) February 11, 2020
Klein has refrained from revealing what caused the video to be demonetized, or if he had spoken to YouTube about the issue. Dexerto has reached out to the YouTuber for comment.
Schnatter has come under criticism in the past regarding comments he made regarding national anthem protests by NFL players, calling out the league’s commissioner Roger Goodell for not acting. He remained as chairman of Papa John’s Pizza until July 2018 when he resigned from the board of directors.