YouTube star KSI has responded to criticism from women's groups who accuse him of trivialising rape in his videos. The 22-year-old, real name Olajide Olatunji, whose channel has over 10.2 million subscribers, has been urged to remove so-called 'rape face' videos.
The coalition End Violence Against Women condemned KSI for denigrating victims of sexual violence and propagating misogynistic views. In one video from August 2014, KSI repeatedly called a Page 3 model a 'slut' while questioning her about her sex life.
A spokesman for KSI said the star had removed all offensive material two years ago, acknowledging it was a 'mistake as a teenager' and that he had previously apologised. The spokesman added: 'He does not create or support any such montages referred to.'
The controversy follows the publication of KSI's debut book, 'I Am A Bellend', which entered the UK charts at number 23. His YouTube channel is the third most subscribed in Britain, with 3 million more followers than Ed Sheeran's.
Sarah Green of End Violence Against Women said: 'Trivialising and minimising rape contributes to a culture where rape is not taken seriously.' The row echoes criticism of fellow YouTuber Dapper Laughs, whose ITV show was pulled in 2014 after he made a joke about rape.
