Video hosting and live streaming site Rumble has always positioned itself as a “free space” for creators who feel excluded from big tech sites like Twitch or YouTube. Founded in 2013 by Canadian entrepreneur Chris Pavlovski, the site has made a name for itself as the safe haven for conservative extremists like white nationalist Nick Fuentes, conspiracy monger Alex Jones, misogynist Andrew Tate, and former Trump strategist Steve Bannon. These users don’t have to fear banning or pushback on their content—even if it is misleading or hateful.
But recently, Rumble has been making larger moves to expand outside of the conservative bubble. On April 13, streamer Jidion Adams announced that he would start streaming on both Rumble and YouTube. Once one of Twitch’s fastest-rising stars, he was permanently banned on Twitch in January 2022 after he had encouraged his fans to harass streamer Imane Anys, known as Pokimane. Adams isn’t really a political personality, but rather an agent of chaos that pranks random people around the world, mostly by just annoying them into a reaction. He’s pushed the bar multiple times and has been arrested in Paris and Houston for his antics.
Just a month later on May 15, Rumble announced that Kai Cenat and Darren “iShowSpeed” Watkins would be hosting a live-streamed show on the platform. The content that Rumble allows the platform is worrisome, especially with this new wave of streamers coming to the platform. …