Was Watcher's Apology Genuine? Body Language Analysis

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Steven strikes me as someone who's still 100% on the streaming route and leaving youtube. He was there to defend it while Shane and Ryan were there to apologize. I've never seen Shane be so quiet on screen before

I find it interesting that in the video they announced the streaming platform it felt like Ryan and Shane were reading the script when Steven felt more genuine in his delivery. In this video it seems that Steven is reading the words and Ryan and Shane are feeling them.

They put Shane in the middle this time. Very strategic. I wouldn’t blame him if he jumped ship. He’d be successful even on his own. He seems like the most down to earth of the 3. IMO

just devil's advocate here on steven: while my INTUITION is definitely telling me that steven doesn't feel too bad about this, as a psychologist i want to step in and say that emotionally dissociating from the situation also makes sense, which would explain his detached presentation. it's also possible that he's feeling so anxious and remorseful that he's reacting with tempered aggression as a fight or flight response. think about it: some people immediately jump to anger and defensiveness when they're in the wrong, even if they know and feel that they're in the wrong. anyway, just food for thought. EDIT: a reply brought this point up: steven could also totally be neurodivergent and simply presenting in a way that neurotypical people would find unacceptable in the current situation. a lack of expression doesn't always mean a lack of feeling.

the notion that Steven has to “curate” an apologetic or remorseful face seems to be a testament of what happens when you “learn how to be a human on Youtube”

I'm not all the way through the video yet, but I saw someone mention that Steven once said he had trouble with expressing emotions growing up, had to practice smiling, etc. I don't know the reason behind it, and I don't want to speculate, but I know both neurodivergence and trauma are a few reasons this could happen. Whatever his reasons, if it's true, I think that would explain why his nonverbal communication comes across as disingenuous. He might actually be sorry off screen, but in this moment, I think it's possible he's totally disconnected from his genuine feelings and focused on "performing" his emotions rather than feeling them. Idk there's just these moments, where it's like he's remembering to emote or his gestures are just a little stiff, and I feel like there's more to it.

To be honest Steven's posture and tone this entire video reminded me of Eugene's posture from the Try Guy's video when they were discussing the whole Ned situation. While Eugene's posture was totally warranted, it's crazy to me that I'm seeing such a posture in an apology video. I don't even watch Watchers' videos, but just by my own experiences Steven's attitude seems like he's only saying things he knows people want to hear, not because he really feels the things he is saying.

I think it’s ridiculous to say their channel wouldn’t have made it without the changes… cut your staff, your salaries, your expenses (first class flight, 5 stars hotels) and it will work out…

I accept their apology but I won't resubscribe. Someone at their company is mismanaging money - most likely Steven since Ryan and Shane admitted they aren't good with money and made him CEO. They would have been better off hiring a financial advisor. Furthermore, making an apology video and receiving more money from their subscribers isn't going to fix the Steven problem. Ryan and Shane need to be able to stand up to him and correct course. If anything, this apology video demonstrates that Steven has a lot of control over the situation and feels his actions are justified. Ryan and Shane are saying what Steven wants them to say which shows they're still under his influence. Time and again they provide excuses for why their business model isn't sustainable when other YouTubers with similar numbers know that it is. I've seen many successful content creators say that 25 employees is an insane number for a channel of their size. There are thousands of Watcher fans willing to ignore the obvious just because they want to see their content. For me, personally, I can't support a channel with Steven at the helm. It enables Steven's greed and is hurting two people I actually like.

As someone who's watched their stuff since their Buzzfeed days: your analysis of their personalities/ group dynamics is spot-on. I don't think Steven is actually sorry nor do I think he would have appeared in/ taped an apology if he thought it wouldn't mess up his paycheck. He's probably pissed in this video because he knows he'll never get his "Worth It" revival. I'd be willing to bet that Steven was the driving force behind this decision and they were waiting on him to approve walking it back. You touched on this a little bit: people in the reviews and comments would talk about how there's three of them, that they're all founders, so it had to be a group decision. I don't think so. Ryan and Shane had stepped down as CEOs last year leaving Steven to be the sole CEO because he was the one who understood the business side of this stuff whereas Ryan and Shane were the creative force behind Watcher. As CEO, I can only imagine that he gets more say than people think, and since he hired on his buddies from his old Buzzfeed show Worth It (literally a show dedicated to experiencing ridiculous luxuries) I bet they were the voices suggesting Ryan and Shane just go along with it so they can make even more money. Steven's entire claim to fame is spending beaucoops of someone else's money on stuff most of us wouldn't consider doing even if we had the cash; so it wouldn't shock anyone if he was the one who came up with this hairbrained scheme and pushed it as hard as he could so he could relive his "Worth It" days on Watcher's dime.

What people need to understand is Shane and Ryan are adults and also agreed to this. There's now world where Steven is the only one who made this decision. To me it felt more like a "we're sorry you feel that way" more than a genuine apology. Again, they already had pateron. They could have done pateron exclusive shows. And manged their Pateron better. Pateron only takes between 3-5% which is probably way cheaper than hosting your own website and video hosting. There really was no need for any of this.

The first thing to do when a company is struggling is 'trim the fat' and focus on the core of what made you a success in the first place. Not take on lots more 'fat' that hasn't been market researched, and pay for it off the backs of fans with less money than you have. Do they 'need' 25 staff? Do they 'need' a studio in Hollywood? Do they need to produce too many spin-off videos that don't get as many views? I'd start trimming a lot of fat before offloading costs onto loyal fans that put you where you are in the first place. An inefficient, mismanaged bloated business model fueled by ambition (I don't want to say ego) is not the fans responsiblilty.

Personally, as much as I love Ryan and Shane, they both deserved to be humbled. Even in some of their recent content (mostly Ryan) they seemed to be putting on more of a 'performance' when being on screen. It kind of ruined the relatability feeling while watching. Like seeing Ryan pretend that he is still afraid of ghosts because that is what fans expect from him. Clearly he has overcome that fear, but still plays into it. It is annoying watching the performative aspect of it when I just want to see Ryan and Shane being genuine and relatable. The authenticity has been dwindling recently. So I hope that this whole experience humbles them, and makes them start acting more like themselves again. Stop overdoing things! Now about Steven. The man bugs me. He has the whole time since they started Watcher. I can't get a good vibe on him, and he doesn't mesh well with Shane and Ryan's personalities, so it makes it more obvious. I don't want to dislike him, but him spending a bunch of money on ridiculously pricey foods in his videos doesn't sit well with me on a channel that otherwise is dedicated to funny, silly, spookiness.

One good thing that came from this drama is that I found your channel.

Steven had the equivalent tone of the "please stay on the line, your call is VERY important to us......" lady whenever a company puts you on hold lol

Are we forgetting the fact that on one of their more recent ghost files videos, wather took their whole team (which they've now admitted, they take the whole team with them to these events) to a theme park BEFORE going to their filming. Yeah, they're splurging money. You dont need to do that to be good employers.

When I look at the comments on any video related to this episode, I don't like the idea of Steven becoming a scapegoat. But I have to say that the way Shane and Ryan carried themselves also seemed the most sincere.

I hope Shane feels a little guilty because he’s the one that is always like “eat the rich” so he should have known how wrong this move was, I’m disappointed in him.

Layoffs are, sadly, just part of running a business sometimes. They over employed, and over produced their content and refused to admit they had made a mostake and tried to make their audience pay to cover them