PC Tech Gamers Nexus takes Linus Tech Tips out back to the woodshed regarding data accuracy, conflicts of interest, etc.

[Spork3245]

3 minutes ago, Spork3245 said:

Going awhile (a long while) back his content and channel were “fine”, but as his channel grew his ego and douchie-ness grew, and he started to have an extremely fragile ego to where he would publicly post things better kept private so his fans would attack, then post a week or so later “hey, guys, harassment isn’t cool”.

Here’s an example: 

 

Now, I cannot confirm the validity of what is being stated in regards to whether or not this person’s story is true (suicide). However, at the very least, Linus chose to make it public that this channel got the silver button at auction and that he (Linus) wanted it back and the buyer didn’t want to give it back, causing harassment of this channel. When you have a fanbase you bear at least some responsibility of their actions, IMO.

[DarkStar189]

I like how he couldn’t even make it through his apology video without being dramatic.  I tried fixing the problem over 2 business days. A problem that brewed for months due to neglect. Stfu and take accountability.

[Firewithin]

5 hours ago, cusideabelincoln said:

Oh dear, the workplace is toxic and misogynistic behind-the-scenes, apparently from a couple of people in management (not explicitly named). And, of course, Linus operates everything from a completely selfish perspective and will gaslight anyone who even attempts to "tarnish" his brand name.

 

Thread by @suuuoppp on Thread Reader App

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@suuuoppp: To stop the speculation and DM's I am receiving. I chose to quit my role at LTT because it, and the working environment I was facing, were ruining my mental health. The number of daily items...…

 

 

 

 

ive never really watched LTT vids but i remember seeing her pop up in a few that i did watch/skim and even saw her pop up on twitch as well.  this sucks and hopefully the channel gets wrecked for this

[Ghost_MH]

1 hour ago, Spork3245 said:

Here’s an example: 

 

Now, I cannot confirm the validity of what is being stated in regards to whether or not this person’s story is true (suicide). However, at the very least, Linus chose to make it public that this channel got the silver button at auction and that he (Linus) wanted it back and the buyer didn’t want to give it back, causing harassment of this channel. When you have a fanbase you bear at least some responsibility of their actions, IMO.

 

Yeah, I remember Linus complaining about not getting the button and how the other person that won the button should give it to him since he deserved it because he was responsible for all those NCIX subscribers in the first place.

 

I also remember seeing comments about this kid killing himself at least a year or two back. If the poor kid didn't kill himself, he certainly stopped uploading videos at exactly the same time his dad wrote that.

 

Fine the video. Check out the comments.

 

 

They're all timestamped correctly for the story to line up right. That is, this certainly isn't a casr of this story coming up now because of GN's video. The kid that won the button stopped uploading new videos five years ago, as soon as this video went up and he started getting but with harassment from LTT fanboys and then his maybe father went on Reddit a year or so later to grieve and it. This wasn't a nobody either. He still has more than a million subscribers that he just abandoned, overnight.

 

https://youtube.com/@MindChop

[Spork3245]

1 hour ago, Ghost_MH said:

 

Yeah, I remember Linus complaining about not getting the button and how the other person that won the button should give it to him since he deserved it because he was responsible for all those NCIX subscribers in the first place.

 

I also remember seeing comments about this kid killing himself at least a year or two back. If the poor kid didn't kill himself, he certainly stopped uploading videos at exactly the same time his dad wrote that.

 

Fine the video. Check out the comments.

 

 

They're all timestamped correctly for the story to line up right. That is, this certainly isn't a casr of this story coming up now because of GN's video. The kid that won the button stopped uploading new videos five years ago, as soon as this video went up and he started getting but with harassment from LTT fanboys and then his maybe father went on Reddit a year or so later to grieve and it. This wasn't a nobody either. He still has more than a million subscribers that he just abandoned, overnight.

 

https://youtube.com/@MindChop

 

I'll take your word for it because I really don't want to give LTT views  

It's really shitty how Linus handled it - it's his fault for auctioning it, and yes I know he's claiming it was a mistake... just like the auctioning of Billet Labs block was a mistake. Sounds like LTT makes a lot of auction mistakes

[Spork3245]

3 hours ago, Brian said:

The video is monetized lololol

 

[Firewithin]

1 minute ago, Spork3245 said:

 

gotta make money NO MATTER WHAT

[Spork3245]

2 minutes ago, Firewithin said:

gotta make money NO MATTER WHAT

[Spork3245]

1 hour ago, Spork3245 said:

 

 

 
 

lmao

[Ghost_MH]

22 minutes ago, Spork3245 said:

 

 
 

lmao

 

What? It was pretty obvious from Billet's post that THEY wanted to keep the price confidential, not that LMG had asked them to.

[Spork3245]

JFC

[cusideabelincoln]

Listen to Linus explain their terrible harassment policy, and get a bonus clue as to who the toxic, abusive manager to Madison was (it's most likely James, the guy who looks like he expects any woman to sleep with him because he wants them to. Fun fact, he's also the head of writing so that explains their terrible apology video):

 

 

Quote

Transcription if you're having trouble hearing:

(speaker 1, Linus) So we called this meeting because it's come to our attention that we need to have a quick chat about the best way to handle HR related feedback and rumors. We won't be giving any names for what I hope are extraordinarily obvious reasons, but what we can do is give you the following guidelines for problem solving and conflict resolution.

Sorry that this is all boring and corporate, but here we are. Number one, always stand up for what's right. We're only a team as long as we're all working together and working for each other. That's the most important one. Number two, always reflect on your own personal experiences and use your common sense. Few things in life are truly black and white. Number three, always wait to hear both sides of a story before passing your own judgment. Be cautious when you know that one side is bound by legal and ethical disclosure guidelines, when the other is not. Carefully consider what it says about the character of someone who would engage in that type of gossip against someone who has no power to defend themselves.

Number four, always encourage openness and transparency. If you have a problem, you need to speak up. We want to fix it. If you receive feedback about somebody else at this company, the first response is, have you spoken with this person? Followed closely by, you need to speak with this person. We don't solve interpersonal issues here, or really anywhere in your life, if you wish to live in a drama free zone, by engaging in water cooler politicking. So, if for any reason that individual is not comfortable approaching the person they're having a conflict with, we have a chain that they're supposed to follow.

So first, you advise them to take the problem to their manager. Followed by me or Yvonne, followed by our third party HR firm. I hope that you all trust that we're here to make this a safe, fun, and productive workplace, and we won't tolerate mistreatment of any of our team members.

If you have any reason to believe otherwise, then I refer you again to point number four, which is to address the issue with the individual directly, or bring it to me or Yvonne, or bring it to our third party HR firm. Since I'm not at liberty to share any details about what occurred, uh, all I can do is ask that you trust me and Yvonne.

Um, some of you know us very well, I've been here a very long time, um, some of you have not been here for as long, but I like to think that whether you've been here for nine years or nine days, you're here for a reason and you believe that we are utmost to run this company with integrity and compassion.

Um, We can't solve problems we don't know about though, so on that note, I'd like to invite anyone who has concerns about a fellow team member or about a manager to submit their feedback either by speaking with their manager, me or Yvonne directly, or if you would prefer to provide your feedback anonymously, we have an option for that as well.

It's the manager and co worker feedback form. Uh, Yvonne, if you're not aware of it, show of hands who is not aware of it. Hey, a lot of people aren't aware of it. Good, so now we all know. There's an anonymous form, if for whatever reason you're not comfortable, (inaudible) you can talk to me or Yvonne directly about it (inaudible) in the general chat.

It's a safe space to provide us ideas for improvement, or if you're consumed by the holiday spirit and you want to say nice things, you can do that too. Does anybody else have any questions?

Not a single questions? Wow, that must have been a really good speech.

 

(speaker 2, James)You gonna dance on that table, or just stand on it?

 

(speaker 1, Linus)That's it! So, um, Yvonne, did you have anything you wanted to add?

 

(speaker 3, Yvonne)(inaudible) Somebody said (inaudible) if you guys want to sanitize your hands, help yourself with free (inaudible)?

 

(speaker 1, Linus)Yeah, that was actually just totally random timing. It came up the stairs a moment ago. Dennis is on it. Alright. Thank you everyone. Have a wonderful and, uh, productive rest of your day. And weekend.

 

[Bacon]

17 minutes ago, cusideabelincoln said:

Listen to Linus explain their terrible harassment policy, and get a bonus clue as to who the toxic, abusive manager to Madison was (it's most likely James, the guy who looks like he expects any woman to sleep with him because he wants them to. Fun fact, he's also the head of writing so that explains their terrible apology video):

I just want to point out that this is from 2021. I had thought it was from today. It doesn't make it any better, but while it is tied to the overall situation this wasn't made today in response to the tweets.

[Ghost_MH]

33 minutes ago, cusideabelincoln said:

Number two, always reflect on your own personal experiences and use your common sense. Few things in life are truly black and white. Number three, always wait to hear both sides of a story before passing your own judgment. Be cautious when you know that one side is bound by legal and ethical disclosure guidelines, when the other is not. Carefully consider what it says about the character of someone who would engage in that type of gossip against someone who has no power to defend themselves.

 

I'm guessing this is from when Madison first posted her negative Glassdoor review. I just wanted to say, this is exactly the kind of BS you hear Twitter and Reddit bros say when they want to defend a guy against harassment charges but want to give the air of impartiality while doing so.

[Kal-El814]

9 minutes ago, Ghost_MH said:

 

I'm guessing this is from when Madison first posted her negative Glassdoor review. I just wanted to say, this is exactly the kind of BS you hear Twitter and Reddit bros say when they want to defend a guy against harassment charges but want to give the air of impartiality while doing so.

 

"There's two sides to every story," is the weakest sauce when you've been told to calm your tits, called slurs, and asked about your sexual history. Just fucking take the L, it's not like there's actually going to be a consequence. I don't fucking get it. I've said a couple deeply stupid things to women at work over the years, apologized for them, and did what I could to make it right including fucking off when that's what was asked of me. It's like watching someone try to make a layup and when they get near the basket they just start flogging themselves in the dick.

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

Man, I bet Gamers Nexus could NEVER have predicted the direction things have gone since posting their video.

[Ghost_MH]

1 hour ago, Kal-El814 said:

 

"There's two sides to every story," is the weakest sauce when you've been told to calm your tits, called slurs, and asked about your sexual history. Just fucking take the L, it's not like there's actually going to be a consequence. I don't fucking get it. I've said a couple deeply stupid things to women at work over the years, apologized for them, and did what I could to make it right including fucking off when that's what was asked of me. It's like watching someone try to make a layup and when they get near the basket they just start flogging themselves in the dick.

 

3 minutes ago, Commissar SFLUFAN said:

Man, I bet Gamers Nexus could NEVER have predicted the direction things have gone since posting their video.

 

Talk about flogging themselves in the dick. GN's first video opened with Steve saying they were disabling monetization on the video because it was a serious subject...then LTT's apology video is monetized and has plugs for sponsors and store merch.

[Nokra]

Man this thread really went somewhere I didn't expect. I never liked LTT's clickbait headlines and didn't ever go to them for technical reviews, but I'm kind of surprised to hear the allegations. Yeesh. 

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

2 minutes ago, Nokra said:

Man this thread really went somewhere I didn't expect. 

 

Now imagine the reaction over at Gamers Nexus!

[Littleronin]

I wonder if Linus and Yvonne are rethinking not selling the company now. 

[Ghost_MH]

2 minutes ago, Littleronin said:

I wonder if Linus and Yvonne are rethinking not selling the company now. 

 

Not nearly as much as that company is likely thankful they chose not to.

[Air_Delivery]

2 hours ago, Nokra said:

Man this thread really went somewhere I didn't expect. I never liked LTT's clickbait headlines and didn't ever go to them for technical reviews, but I'm kind of surprised to hear the allegations. Yeesh. 

At least to me his shtick always came off fake as fuck so I'm not terribly surprised. The people i've met that rubbed me the same way as Linus always turned out to be egotistical assholes. 

[Nokra]

26 minutes ago, Air_Delivery said:

At least to me his shtick always came off fake as fuck so I'm not terribly surprised. The people i've met that rubbed me the same way as Linus always turned out to be egotistical assholes. 

True. Generally I also think that anyone who wants to be a YouTuber is probably not quite right in the head.  

[Link200]

The Madison thing could be huge but her write up feels a lot like the crazy crap I would get as a union leader. I would get the craziest accusations about the company (they are doing this to me on purpose!) and random interpretations about contracts and such. These types of people do exist and that must be kept in mind.

 

With that said, I doubt everything she said is on that level. The harassment stuff could definitely exist. I just find that a chunk of the write-up could easily fall under the misinterpretation/victim umbrella. It could be very easy to be distracted when reading contracts, employee handbooks, etc right after your brother died. Not to mention the stress of moving away from friends and family immediately after such an event as well.

 

Without information we have no way to really know. Hell, she very well could have been an absolute mess to work with or actually was targeted for various reasons. Immediately coming to a conclusion based on her write-up would be the wrong move.

 

LTT did say they would publish the results of a third party investigation on the Madison thing. Who knows if they actually will or if it will be accurate.

[Massdriver]

I prefer to read hardware reviews, but all this cash makes sense why so many reviews are done on YouTube now. I generally preferred GN or Hardware Unboxed when I do watch a video. GN was harsh but he seems authentic. 
 

This has to be hurting future sales prospects. This reminds me of the forum resetera broke off from. 

[Kal-El814]

On 8/17/2023 at 2:29 PM, Link200 said:

The Madison thing could be huge but her write up feels a lot like the crazy crap I would get as a union leader. I would get the craziest accusations about the company (they are doing this to me on purpose!) and random interpretations about contracts and such. These types of people do exist and that must be kept in mind.

 

With that said, I doubt everything she said is on that level. The harassment stuff could definitely exist. I just find that a chunk of the write-up could easily fall under the misinterpretation/victim umbrella. It could be very easy to be distracted when reading contracts, employee handbooks, etc right after your brother died. Not to mention the stress of moving away from friends and family immediately after such an event as well.

 

Without information we have no way to really know. Hell, she very well could have been an absolute mess to work with or actually was targeted for various reasons. Immediately coming to a conclusion based on her write-up would be the wrong move.

 

LTT did say they would publish the results of a third party investigation on the Madison thing. Who knows if they actually will or if it will be accurate.

 

It's worth keeping in mind that shit like this happens much more often than someone decides to make it up or embellish it. When I fired someone, they posted online about how they were fired after they told their manager they had a cancer diagnosis, something about which I was not told and had no idea about.

 

That said...

 

I've been in rooms with HR reps when they tell people that someone's harassment complaint could hurt someone's career / hurt their feelings / cause retaliation, etc. I had an HR department fuck up a 401k rollover after our company got acquired, the IRS thought that my rollover was an early cashout and sent me a bill for $50K. When I talked to my HR department about it their advice boiled down to "maybe file your taxes fraudulently so the IRS doesn't consider this as income, it would be inconvenient to correct this mistake for you," an issue that took literal years to resolve. I've heard someone say, "so and so is a huge fucking cunt" after leaving so and so's office and everyone who pointed that out to HR was told the person who said it was just blowing off steam and nothing happened. Someone got burned by Outlook autocomplete and accidentally sent a meme that featured someone's ballsack in the picture to the wrong person, the person on the receiving got told that it was just an accident and to lighten up. I have hired employees and had them entered into the system with the wrong job title and pay. I hired someone, had them show up, and on their first day they were told there were budget issues and the position they would be filling didn't exist anymore and maybe they could ask their old job if they could go back. I've been part of job screening meetings where people straight up say that they won't hire someone because they're too old or that they mentioned that they had just had a kid at some point during the interview process.

 

Absolutely nothing was said in there seems outlandish to me at all. This shit happens all the time. ALL THE TIME.

[Link200]

On 8/20/2023 at 2:53 PM, Kal-El814 said:

 

It's worth keeping in mind that shit like this happens much more often than someone decides to make it up or embellish it. When I fired someone, they posted online about how they were fired after they told their manager they had a cancer diagnosis, something about which I was not told and had no idea about.

 

That said...

 

I've been in rooms with HR reps when they tell people that someone's harassment complaint could hurt someone's career / hurt their feelings / cause retaliation, etc. I had an HR department fuck up a 401k rollover after our company got acquired, the IRS thought that my rollover was an early cashout and sent me a bill for $50K. When I talked to my HR department about it their advice boiled down to "maybe file your taxes fraudulently so the IRS doesn't consider this as income, it would be inconvenient to correct this mistake for you," an issue that took literal years to resolve. I've heard someone say, "so and so is a huge fucking cunt" after leaving so and so's office and everyone who pointed that out to HR was told the person who said it was just blowing off steam and nothing happened. Someone got burned by Outlook autocomplete and accidentally sent a meme that featured someone's ballsack in the picture to the wrong person, the person on the receiving got told that it was just an accident and to lighten up. I have hired employees and had them entered into the system with the wrong job title and pay. I hired someone, had them show up, and on their first day they were told there were budget issues and the position they would be filling didn't exist anymore and maybe they could ask their old job if they could go back. I've been part of job screening meetings where people straight up say that they won't hire someone because they're too old or that they mentioned that they had just had a kid at some point during the interview process.

 

Absolutely nothing was said in there seems outlandish to me at all. This shit happens all the time. ALL THE TIME.

 

HR exists solely to protect the company so nothing you say about them is exactly groundbreaking.

 

Yes assholes exist in companies. Incompetent people exist as well. The funny thing is that an incompetent person isn't personally targeting someone. You have to figure out if it is an asshole or someone that is just incompetent causing the problems. Or the person complaining could have an chip on their shoulder and can't seem to leave defense mode. As a result they are combative and cause problems as well.

 

Yes, corporate bullshit happens all the time. Never said it didn't. I'm just pulling from personal experience and could be completely wrong.

 

Comments like the one below this throw up a huge red flag to me because she is adding context that simply doesn't exist within the post. It literally is an emotional embellishment of what Linus actually said. How do we know this isn't something she happened to do on the job as well?

 

"And if you read it, it pretty much says 'hehe no one has come out against us, therefore we have done no wrong'"

 

If Linus actually hadn't heard her complaints and they hadn't been reported in the news then he is completely correct in what he said in the post she quoted.

 

There literally are people that get into a rut when they get slighted or in trouble and read into EVERYTHING in a negative light. I have been there and I have worked directly with those people. The smallest things seem like direct attacks when in reality they are just ignorant or have a personal beef themselves. These people tend to be type-a individuals that seem to never get there way.

 

I am not swayed by emotional appeals. While her claims need to be taken seriously we also need to take a step back for a second and actually analyze what we can before burning anyone at the stake. Who knows, perhaps the third party will come back with the goods and heads will roll. Maybe their HR people will do what they are trained to do and go into full protection mode. Hard to tell or even know. That is what makes these situations so incredibly stupid on the outside. Easy to take sides but not very easy to justify the side you are on with actual evidence since it usually isn't available publicly.

[Spawn_of_Apathy]

The funny thing about this is essentially LTT fired the first shot by calling out GN. What’s that about people in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones. lol 

 

And yeah Linus always seems a bit dickish to me. Like the kind of guy that would act like it was a personal insult that waitress forgot his side of ranch, and would humiliate them for it. I dunno, maybe I’m wrong and he’s actually super low key and nice outside of work and away from cameras. 

[Link200]

GN made a video about dropping $250,000 into testing equipment and then three weeks later the LTT story dropped that directly attacked their testing and new lab.

 

This feels more like a power move than anything else. That said, LTT was never a top tier for hardware reviews and did need a reality check. Especially if they do intend to get much more specialized.

[Xbob42]

On 8/20/2023 at 11:53 AM, Kal-El814 said:

When I fired someone, they posted online about how they were fired after they told their manager they had a cancer diagnosis

...how did you come across this post?

[Kal-El814]

1 minute ago, Xbob42 said:

...how did you come across this post?

 

They posted it on Glassdoor and were specific enough for me to realize who it was even though it was posted anonymously.

[Xbob42]

9 minutes ago, Kal-El814 said:

 

They posted it on Glassdoor and were specific enough for me to realize who it was even though it was posted anonymously.

Makes sense. With some folks there's a million ways "I found this message after I fired them" could've gone bad. 

[Kal-El814]

13 minutes ago, Xbob42 said:

Makes sense. With some folks there's a million ways "I found this message after I fired them" could've gone bad. 

 

Hah, yes.

 

You can tell how great things were going for that company at the time; we had our bonuses tied to Glassdoor rating improvements so people spent a lot of time mashing refresh at the end of the fiscal year. Memories...

[Spawn_of_Apathy]

Should have just been like some sellers on Amazon. Bribe people to leave positive reviews with $10 gift cards. 
 

God, I don’t remember if it was Glassdoor or not, it might have been, but I worked at a place that asked many current employees to go write positive reviews about the company online. 

[Nokra]