Chestnuts Incident

**The Chestnuts Incident**, also referred to as the **QTCinderella drama**, is a drama incident that occurred on the H3 Podcast on January 30, 2023. Ethan and other members of the crew (including Zach) received heavy social media backlash for the incident, prompting Ethan to issue an apology to Twitch streamer QTCinderella.

## Background

On January 30, 2023, a clip exposing popular Twitch streamer Atrioc went viral on social media. In the clip, Atrioc briefly shows the tabs open on his computer; one of which being a deepfake porn website. The website in question sells access to deepfake AI-generated pornographic images and videos of female Twitch streamers, including Pokimane, Maya Higa, and QTCinderella. Many of these streamers were friends/acquiantances of Atrioc. A few hours after the clip went viral, Atrioc appeared on stream with his partner to address the situation.

On the same day, multiple Twitch streamers responded to the viral controversy, including QTCinderella. QTCinderella responded with a teary-eyed video in which she expressed her displeasure with being used for sexual content by "men that see women only as sexual objects."

## Song

On January 26, 2023, Ethan and the podcast crew discover Anuc Attitawan on TikTok. His rendition of Nat King Cole's 'Christmas Song', particularly the opening lines, become instantly popular with both the crew and the audience. In the days leading up to the incident, Zach plays Anuc's "Chestnuts" over videos where it would otherwise be unfitting, including emotional or scary videos. The following are the opening lines of 'Christmas Song.'

> *"Chestnuts roasting on an open fire / Jack Frost nipping at your nose / Yuletide carols being sung by a choir / And folks dressed up like Eskimos"*
>
>

## Event

On January 30, 2023, Ethan and Hila interviewed Rebecca Black. After the interview had concluded and Black had left, Klein continued the podcast, talking about drama involving Twitch streamer QTCinderella.

Klein watched a video clip in which a teary-eyed QTCinderella responds to a website selling inappropriate deepfakes of herself and other female broadcasters. While the video is playing, podcast crew member Zach (under instruction from Klein) played a slowed-down version of Nat King Cole’s ‘Christmas Song,' performed by Anuc Attitawan over the video, causing Klein and several crew members to burst into laughter. Klein immediately received critical responses from his own crew, including Sam who was visibly upset during the laughter. After a moment passed, he apologized for laughing and claimed that he supported QT amid the ongoing situation. Nevertheless, the clip went viral on social media, prompting Klein to issue a full apology to QTCinderella, and Ludwig (her partner and fellow Twitch streamer), both in Twitter DMs and publicly.

## Aftermath

The following day, on January 31, 2023, Ethan posted an apology video to his Ethan Klein channel, titled "What is wrong with me? Apology to QTCinderella". In the eight-minute long video, Ethan issues a full apology to QTCinderella, as well as Ludwig Ahgren (her partner and fellow Twitch streamer). He also mentions that he direct messaged both of them on X (at the time known as Twitter).

This event also became the catalyst for Ethan and the crew investing in The Button, a livesteaming killswitch that can delete live footage in real time, in order to avoid similar incidents in the future. The drama and following purchase of the button has also led to Ethan commonly thinking twice before saying something, and using the button in emergency situations, causing him to stay relatively uncontroversial since.

## References

1. ↑ Patterson, Calum (January 30, 2023). "Twitch streamer Atrioc gives tearful apology after paying for deepfakes of female streamers". Dexerto. Retrieved on September 10, 2023.
2. ↑ Tyler, Josh (January 31, 2023). "Pokimane, QTCinderella & Sweet Anita respond after Atrioc deepfake drama". Dexerto. Retrieved on September 10, 2023.
3. ↑ Ulseey [@ulseey4176] (February 1, 2023). "QTCinderella speaks up about Atrioc...". Archived from the original VOD. Retrieved on September 10, 2023.
4. ↑ Glaze, Virginia (January 31, 2023). "Ethan Klein issues formal apology to QTCinderella after laughing at deepfake drama". Dexerto. Retrieved on September 10, 2023.
5. ↑ Ethan Klein (January 31, 2023). "What is wrong with me? Apology to QTCinderella". via YouTube. Retrieved on September 11, 2023.