Summary

Ramsey Khalid Ismael, known online as Johnny Somali, faces trial in South Korea for disruptive behavior at a convenience store and is banned from leaving the country.

Somali, infamous for offensive stunts, has provoked outrage with actions like desecrating the Comfort Woman statue in Seoul and mocking historical tragedies in Japan.

South Korean authorities imposed a travel ban due to flight risk, though he remains at large.

Somali’s antics, often streamed on Rumble, have drawn widespread condemnation as part of a growing trend of “nuisance influencers” disrupting communities abroad.

  • @maplebar
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    1 month ago

    Yep. I’m glad you see it that way too.

    We don’t make art or music anymore, we make “content” for YouTube, Twitch and TikTok. Kids don’t grow up dreaming to make the next killer movie or fun game, they want to become a rich and influential “content creator”. If they are lucky, the “content” that they make for big tech company “platforms” will eventually lead to them gathering a dedicated group of loyal followers over whom they can hold a strong “influence”, and that influence can be traded for money via advertising corporate products.

    What it comes down to is that the tech corps have money, and they will use some of that money to entice people to make “content” for their “platforms”, and that’s a big part of the framework of the modern era. If they ever gain the ability to create genuinely desirable “content” using AI, they will instantly cut out all of the human money-sinks from their business model.