YouTuber and conspiracy theorist Shane Dawson released two videos in a series about various conspiracies. His channel is made up of mainly conspiracy videos, on the topics of pop culture, well-known companies, and even historical events. After his newly published video called “Conspiracy Theories with Shane Dawson,” was released some of the companies in question quickly debunked the theories, but most viewers remain on Dawson’s side. One of his fans tweeted in response to his video, “Ok… Don’t bash me please, but I feel like Chuck E Cheese Pizza isn’t that great… especially after the conspiracy. It’s always tasted weird. Like the ingredients are cheap. #chuckecheese.” I have been a follower of Dawson for years, and for me, almost anything he says goes. If there is even room for conspiracy, I trust his opinions.
Some companies from the recent video included Apple, Chuck E. Cheese and voice copying software.
Dawson has been on this platform for almost 10 years and the following he has gained because of his theories is astounding. He currently has 20 million subscribers and after three days the hour-and-thirty minute long video has received over 15.5 million views. These numbers show the demand for his videos since its length seems to have no negative factor. Dawson’s channel has not always been this way, though. His videos used to be comprised of mainly just videos of him eating fast food items or combining different food items to make one “super food.” His uploads also used to be daily, but recently he has said to be putting more time, effort, and thought into each video, which causes there to be a maximum average of about one video per month. He also has been collaborating with his camera man, Andrew Siwicki, more often because of the length and content of his videos.
Dawson’s first conspiracy to open the series had to do with a recent glitch in the Apple FaceTime and phone call feature. Before Apple even came out and addressed the issue, Dawson noticed it. The bug was that when someone calls you, the caller would be able to hear your conversation before you even picked up the phone. Apple then issued a statement: “We sincerely apologize to our customers who were affected and all who were concerned about this security issue,” the Apple spokesperson said on Friday, February 1. Dawson’s series started filming in early December, so it took Apple close to two months to finally issue a statement and admit that the accusations were correct. Although Dawson is not given credit for noticing the bug, he was unaware of its national presence and shared his findings with his family and friends.
The second theory goes by the name of “Deep Fakes.” Deep fakes are a new type of technology that can copy and scan the face of anyone, and most popularly, celebrities. The software also includes being able to get a celebrity to say whatever you want in a video with voice-changing software in addition. Dawson dives deeper into the world of deep fakes and even interviews a woman whose face was covered with an image of Selena Gomez since their faces are similar in appearance. Dawson gave examples of how this software could quickly show negative effects, for example dubbing new words over those from the president. Later in the series, Dawson dove deeper into voice copying, and even testing it out on his family and friends using a software simply downloaded to his laptop.
Most would say that the main conspiracy and the one that has received the most attention of the series would be a theory against the popular company “Chuck E. Cheese’s.” The theory alleges that the pizza that is being served at the establishment is not as fresh as advertised. He claims to know that leftover slices from various tables are pieced together to create its own new pizza, and served to customers. The evidence from the video, as well as online photos, are undeniable, but the company was quick to “debunk” the theory. Although the company as well as many former employees have tried to put this theory to rest, Dawson’s following still remain on his side. The evidence he gave combined with the various online photos and vague responses from the establishment lead us to believe opposite of what Chuck E. Cheese’s claims.
Dawson’s theories have kept his viewers entertained since the start of his channel, so his fans have trusted his views from the beginning. BuzzFeed recently posted a video “debunking” the Chuck E. Cheese pizza theory, who was allegedly paying BuzzFeed to do in order to clear their name. Comments on the video have caught on and remain on the side of Dawson, despite the efforts of BuzzFeed and Chuck E. Cheese. Viewers and subscribers of Dawson have also created videos of themselves applying for jobs at Chuck E. Cheese in an attempt to expose the establishment, but the majority of them have been unsuccessful.
The theories will never cease, and although there is not usually a sure answer to each one, but there is always room for speculation and wonder.
