Following a series of allegations from former Twitch employees last week, high-profile streamer Guy “Dr Disrespect” Beahm has admitted he was permanently banned from Twitch in 2020 after exchanging “messages with an individual minor back in 2017” that “leaned too much in the direction of being inappropriate”.
The allegations first surfaced last Friday, when Twitch’s former account director of strategic partnerships, Cody Conners, claimed an unnamed person had been banned from the streaming platform “because [he] got caught sexting a minor in the then existing Twitch Whispers product [and] was trying to meet up with her at TwitchCon.” A subsequent report by The Verge explicitly linked the allegations to Beahm after speaking with two former Twitch employees.
The reason for Beahm’s permanent Twitch ban – which occurred roughly halfway through his two-year exclusivity contract with the company in 2020 – has long remained a mystery. And even after last week’s allegations surfaced, Beahm avoided addressing them explicitly, insisting he bound by was “legal obligations” relating to his August 2021 settlement with Twitch. “I didn’t do anything wrong,” he added, “all this has been probed and settled, nothing illegal, no wrongdoing was found, and I was paid.”
Now, however, after being ousted from Midnight Society – the game development studio he co-founded in 2021 – Beahm has addressed the allegations head on, admitting to exchanging messages with a minor in 2017 but insisting there were no “real intentions” behind them.
“Let’s cut the fucking bullshit, as you know there’s no filter with me,” Beahm wrote in a lengthy, sometimes combative statement shared on social media. “I’ve always been up front and real with you guys on anything that I can be up front about, and I’m always willing to accept responsibility… which is why I’m here now.”
“First and foremost I do want to apologise to everyone in my community as well as those close to me, my team, and everyone at Midnight Society Game Studio.
“A lot of people have been left in the dark about what happened yesterday with Midnight Society and I, and we made the painful decision collectively, to have me step down. Our team is full of incredibly talented and good people that have high career ambitions and families and I’d never want jeopardise the culture we have carefully crafted.
“Everyone has been wanting to know why I was banned from Twitch, but for reasons outside of my control, I was not allowed to say anything for the last several years. Now that two former Twitch employees have publicly disclosed the accusations, I can now tell you my side of the story regarding the ban.
“Were there Twitch Whisper messages with an individual minor back in 2017? The answer is yes. Were there real intentions behind these messages, the answer is absolutely not. These were casual, mutual conversations that sometimes leaned too much in the direction of being inappropriate, but nothing more. Nothing illegal happened, no pictures were shared, no crimes were committed, I never even met the individual. I went through a lengthy arbitration regarding a civil dispute with Twitch and that case was resolved by a settlement. Let me be clear, it was not a criminal case against me and no criminal charges have ever been brought against me.
“Now, from a moral standpoint I’ll absolutely take responsibility. I should have never entertained these conversations to begin with. That’s on me. That’s on me as an adult, a husband and a father. It should have never happened. I get it. I’m not perfect and I’ll fucking own my shit. This was stupid.
“Now, with all this said, don’t get it fucking mistaken, I’ve seen all the remarks and labels being throw around so loosely. Social media is a destruction zone. I’m no fucking predator or pedophile. Are you kidding me? Anyone that truly knows me fucking knows where I stand on those things with those types of people. Fuck that. That’s a different level of disgust that I fucking hate even hearing about. Don’t be labelling me as the worst of the worst with your exaggerations. Get the fuck outta here with that shit.
“But I think I’ve said what I needed to say regarding the ban itself. That’s it. That’s why Twitch made the decision in 2020.
“To my team, community, industry friends that have supported me, I apologise, I wish I could’ve said all this sooner. You guys have always showed me and my family love and support throughout all these years we love you guys like you can’t imagine. I have the fucking best community and circle. If any of this has made you uncomfortable, I get it. You don’t have to support me anymore but just know you have always been greatly appreciated.
“But trust me when I say this… to all my haters that live and breath social media with zero real life experience, I don’t give a fuck about you. Finally, if you’re uncomfortable with this entire statement and think I’m a piece of shit, that’s fine. But I’m not fucking going anywhere. I’m not the same guy that made this mistake all those years ago. I’m taking an extended vacation with my family as mentioned on stream and I’m coming back with a heavy weight off my shoulders.”
“They want me to disappear…,” Beahm concluded, “yeah fucking right.”
Following Beahm’s statement, Midnight Society co-founder Robert Bowling took to social media with his own message. “If you inappropriately message a minor,” he wrote, “I cannot work with you. Period. I promised to only act on facts, and I did.”