Emiru talks about why OTK called out Twitch & Grace Van Dien drama Instagram: emiru.jpgTwitch star and OTK co-owner Emiru opened up about the org\u2019s response to Twitch\u2019s branded content drama in an exclusive interview with Dexerto \u2014 as well as the backlash surrounding Grace Van Dien\u2019s induction into FaZe Clan. The OTK Games Expo is coming up soon, where co-owner, cosplayer, and Twitch streamer Emiru is slated to make an appearance to discuss the organization\u2019s plans for breaking into the video game biz. After experiencing a breakout year on Twitch back in 2021, she\u2019s gone on to become a massive force in the streaming space\u2026 an industry that was recently threatened by Twitch\u2019s (now-defunct) branded content guidelines that sparked concerns from broadcasters all across the net. We got the chance to speak with her about those proposed advertising changes, what it was like being the first woman in OTK, and the drama surrounding Stranger Things actress Grace Van Dien\u2019s FaZe Clan fiasco. Emiru talks Twitch\u2019s \u201cscary\u201d branded content guideline drama When Twitch first rolled out its proposed guidelines for branded content on June 6, streamers all across the platform were left fearing for their income. These changes placed heavy restrictions on what kinds of advertisements would be allowed on the site, forbidding any \u201cburned in\u201d audio, video, and display ads. As a result, a slew of top streamers discussed potentially moving away from Twitch and taking their business elsewhere \u2014 sentiments echoed by several key members of OTK. The group even penned an open letter to Twitch asking the company to reconsider those guidelines (which they eventually did, completely removing them just a day later). Dexerto bent Emiru\u2019s ear and asked her how she felt about those two days where the future of streaming seemed uncertain, and what platform she thinks OTK might have gone to if those changes actually went through. \u201cCurrently, I think Twitch is the best platform for the kind of content that we do,\u201d she said. \u201cBut I mean, wherever is the best place to do our events is where we will go. It was really scary when they announced those changes. I\u2019m glad they rolled them back, because had they gone through with those changes, I don\u2019t think any of our shows would\u2019ve been possible. Even things like charity events.\u201d When asked where she would have taken her own stream if things had gone differently, she had a humorously concise reply: \u201cIt\u2019s hard to say. I would want to know what they were offering. I think that\u2019s kinda important.\u201d Emiru discusses Grace Van Dien\u2019s FaZe fiasco It\u2019s no secret that women endure less-than-savory treatment from male players in online games. Even esports aren\u2019t free from harassment, with professional players going as far as making sexist remarks about their opponents after discovering their coach was a woman. So, it should come as no surprise that female streamers are regularly targeted and harassed on Twitch and other livestreaming platforms. And, though certain chatters can be banned if they\u2019re spotted making sexist or inappropriate remarks, it can feel like there\u2019s no escape from it when creating live content in comparison to just recording videos for something like TikTok or YouTube. Stranger Things actress Grace Van Dien notably came under fire from all sides after being announced as FaZe\u2019s latest content creator last month \u2014 a trend that was only exacerbated when co-founder FaZe Rain took aim at her with several personal insults. We asked Emiru for her take on the situation, and, although things have improved on Twitch since she started streaming in her opinion \u201cWell, I\u2019ve been a streamer for eight years now, and I have seen over time a lot of positive changes for women in the space,\u201d she said. \u201cBefore, it was very difficult to be a female streamer and to be, you know, up there with a lot of the guy streamers. \u201cI think it\u2019s easier now, but it\u2019s sad to see that in a lot of parts of the communities, women still aren\u2019t respected or seen as equal. But I feel pretty lucky that within my org, within my section of Twitch, I don\u2019t really experience that as much. But, it is sad to see things like that and I hope that they improve.\u201d This led to a conversation about Emiru\u2019s personal experiences. And, while things have gotten better now, the things she suffered and the stalking and harassment she experienced has clearly stuck with her. Emiru gets real about what it\u2019s like to be a woman on Twitch Seeing as Emiru is one of Twitch\u2019s biggest streamers with over 1.2 million followers on the site (not to mention her 670k Instagram fans), she\u2019s found a great deal of success within the space. However, being a major streaming sensation isn\u2019t all sunshine and roses. Emiru, like many other female content creators, has had to deal with her fair share of stalkers in the past \u2014 so much so, that she had to take a break from streaming to handle the toll it took on her mental health. \u201cI would say pretty much every girl that\u2019s a content creator has a [stalker story], unfortunately,\u201d she said of the situation. \u201cLike, it doesn\u2019t matter how big or small of a streamer you are. It is definitely a big problem for women. I would say like, even male streamers get people like that, but for women it\u2019s very scary.\u201d \u201cI do wish that law enforcement took stalking and threats online more seriously,\u201d she added. \u201cBecause all it takes is one person. As for platforms, it kind of feels like for a lot of situations, especially for women, you\u2019re kind of alone on that. A lot of the girls in streaming will like, talk to each other, make communities about what to do about certain situations. But, in terms of the platforms, there\u2019s not a lot they can do, unfortunately.\u201d That said, Emiru has played a huge role in improving conditions for women in the streaming space and has done her best to create a community that welcomes everyone. And, with her joining arguably the biggest streamer-run organization on Twitch, that community has expanded massively. In fact, Emiru was the first woman ever to be signed with OTK, followed by Extra Emily earlier this year. We asked her what it was like being a trailblazer on the platform and the first girl in the group \u2014 and she admitted that, although it was a bit intimidating at first, she was \u201cexcited and honored\u201d to be part of the star-studded organization. \u201cI was really excited and also honored, because I had known a lot of OTK as friends before,\u201d she said. \u201cThere are a lot of creators that I look up to in OTK that I wanted to be more like as a creator, myself. It was kind of a scary and big position to be the first girl, but I was really excited to change my content and improve myself.\u201d Now, Emiru is focusing on growing as a creator and running her own shows within OTK \u2014 such as the upcoming Cosplay Clash, which is set to take place sometime this June. But when it comes to the future, the streamer says she isn\u2019t sure where she\u2019ll be five, ten years from now\u2026 but she still wants to be doing what she loves. \u201cI would like to still be in the entertainment industry \u2014 doing what? I don\u2019t know exactly yet.\u201d For more news on OTK\u2019s Game Expo, check out our page right here on Dexerto.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Emiru talks about why OTK called out Twitch & Grace Van Dien drama Instagram: emiru.jpgTwitch star and OTK co-owner Emiru opened up about the org\u2019s response to Twitch\u2019s branded content drama in an exclusive interview with Dexerto \u2014 as well as the backlash surrounding Grace Van Dien\u2019s induction into FaZe Clan. The OTK Games Expo […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-48097","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dejan.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48097","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dejan.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dejan.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dejan.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dejan.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=48097"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dejan.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48097\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dejan.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48097"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dejan.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=48097"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dejan.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=48097"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}