Viral petition body shames YouTube star over possible eating disorder
LOS ANGELES -- A viral petition has put a YouTube star at the center of a debate around women's mental health and body image online.
About 18,000 people signed a Change.org petition, which has since been taken down, called on YouTube to temporarily ban Eugenia Cooney from the platform. The petition claims that Cooney "has a serious medical condition and needs to seek help."
The digital influencer and model, who has almost 900,000 subscribers, is known for her vlogs on beauty products and style. Some critics however say her appearance, specifically her thin frame, sends a bad message to younger viewers.
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The petition argues that Cooney's audience -- primarily younger female viewers between ages 12 and 21 -- "have already battled Anorexia and other eating disorders" and therefore Cooney "is setting a bad example for her fellow followers, fans, and friends."
Cooney's representatives did not immediately respond to Mashable's request for comment.
The petition, and chatter around it, has become the latest in a series of debates on the web regarding this topic. For years, the internet has been a place for people to post images, blogs and microsites promoting and glorifying weight loss. The hashtags #thinspiration and #thinspo often accompany images of women with shrinking bodies, who look for encouragement from others on various social media platforms.
Platforms have increasingly been flagging this type of content. In 2012, Tumblr banned content that "actively promotes or glorifies self-injury or self-harm." That same year, Pinterest updated its terms of service to prevent users from pinning content of a similar nature.
Cooney has acknowledged the criticism, however she has never said whether she battles any sort of eating disorder. She has also never plugged any sort of "thinspiration" message using any of her social networks.
In a recent video, she told fans not to worry.
"Seriously, I'm definitely fine I'm definitely not dead or going to die right now...don't worry I'm alive, I'm ok," she said.
Regarding people who have been petitioning for her to leave the platform, she said: "I don't think it's a good thing to do people."
"If anything, the whole situation has been kind of upsetting. I'm doing OK, because I'm used to getting hate on the internet," she said. "Seeing a lot of dislikes, I just really feel like that's not going to make anyone feel good."
Topics YouTube
Saba was a Los Angeles-based reporter who covers all things digital entertainment, including YouTube, streaming services and digital influencers. Prior to that, she spent two years at the Los Angeles Times covering entertainment for the Calendar and Company Town sections. Saba grew up in Santa Monica and graduated from Boston University with a B.S. in journalism and B.A. in political science. When not reporting, she is usually binge watching shows online or looking for new coffee shops to frequent.
