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Owen Benjamin

Owen Smith, known professionally as Owen Benjamin, is an American conspiracy theorist and internet personality known for promoting white supremacy, antisemitism, homophobia, and neo-Nazism.[1][2][3][4][5][6] He was a stand-up comedian and actor who had roles in mainstream film and television between 2008 and 2015.

Owen Benjamin
Benjamin in 2017
Birth nameOwen Smith
BornOswego, New York, U.S.
MediumStand-up, television, film, internet
EducationState University of New York, Plattsburgh (BA)
Years active2006–present
GenresObservational comedy
Notable works and rolesSullivan & Son
The House Bunny
WebsiteOfficial website

In the late 2010s, Benjamin began expressing more extreme political views. In 2019, he was banned from several mainstream social media platforms for violations of their policies, including Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.[7][8][9] These included antisemitic, homophobic, and racist remarks.[5][8][10]

Early life

Owen Smith[11] was born to John Kares Smith and Jean Troy-Smith, both professors at Oswego State University.[12] He attended SUNY Plattsburgh, where he worked at the student-run TV station.[13] He is of Irish and Czech-Jewish descent from his father's side.[14]

Career

Acting and stand-up comedy (2004–2018)

Benjamin starred in several web-only video series, including in the role of Owen on C-SPOT's 2008 Gaytown[15] and the role of Chance Stevens on CBS Interactive's 2009 Heckle U.[16] He also hosted Owen Benjamin Presents, a 2008 C-SPOT production.[15]

In 2008, Benjamin had a supporting role in the comedy film The House Bunny.[13][17] In 2009, he played the lead role in the romantic comedy film All's Faire in Love, co-starring with Christina Ricci.[13][17] From 2012 to 2014, he portrayed Owen Walsh on the TBS original sitcom Sullivan & Son.[13] He also appeared on the MTV show Punk'd[18] and twice as a correspondent on The Jay Leno Show.[13][19] Benjamin hosted the annual ADG Excellence in Production Design Awards from 2014 to 2016.[20] He hosted Esquire Network's The Next Great Burger in 2015.[21]

Towards the end of the decade, Benjamin had established himself as what conservative commentator Bethany Mandel described as an "up-and-coming conservative comedian", booking comedy shows at university campuses.[22] He hosted a podcast called Why Didn't They Laugh on Sideshow Network.[23] In October 2017, Benjamin tweeted his opposition to providing transgender children with hormone therapy, repeatedly referring to an NPR host as a "child molester" for raising a transgender child.[18][22] This led the University of Connecticut to cancel an upcoming show, and Benjamin's talent agency dropped him as a client. In February 2018, Benjamin used a racial slur onstage in a performance in his hometown of Saranac Lake, New York, and more venues cancelled appearances. Mandel described these two events as the "beginning of the end of Benjamin's mainstream career".[22]

Political commentary (2018–present)

Beginning in 2018, Benjamin appeared in two videos for conservative media company PragerU. During various points in his live streams, Benjamin repeated anti-Semitic conspiracy tropes, referred to gay sex as "degeneracy", and called Barack Obama a "nigger".[10][22][24] He also was a guest on several shows by The Daily Wire, and podcasts including those of Joe Rogan and Steven Crowder.[4][22] In September 2018, he appeared on InfoWars show, and in December was a guest on a show by Vox Day.[22]

Views

Benjamin is part of the alt-right[25] and has espoused views rooted in white nationalism that are racist[26] and antisemitic.[27] Bethany Mandel has said that Benjamin, who was once a mainstream conservative comedian, became increasingly radicalized towards the end of the 2010s.[22]

Benjamin has expressed support for various antisemitic conspiracy theories.[2][22][1][28] In October 2018, The Atlantic reported that Benjamin had a history of posting antisemitic memes on Instagram.[3] In 2019, Right Wing Watch reported on Benjamin's statement that Adolf Hitler was trying to "clean Germany, clean it of the parasites, of the fleas", and his claims that Jews control the media.[29][unreliable source?] Right Wing Watch also reported on one of Benjamin's livestreams, where he said, "gays and Jews were considered the worst of the worst. Why? Because if they get power, they will destroy your entire civilization."[8][29] Mandel has said that Benjamin has posted fabricated writing from the Talmud and spread antisemitic conspiracy theories, including Holocaust denial.[22]

Right Wing Watch has reported that Benjamin believes in several other conspiracy theories, such as that the transgender rights movement is part of a eugenics program to reduce the world population, that the Moon landing did not occur, and that the existence of dinosaurs was fabricated by the Smithsonian.[30][31][unreliable source?][10] In November 2019, he spoke at the Flat Earth International Conference in Dallas, Texas.[30] In July 2023, he claimed that the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, as well as test footage of the bombs, were faked.[32][33]

Social media bans

Twitter banned Benjamin in 2018 after he made disparaging tweets about gun control advocate David Hogg.[9] His account was later reinstated under the X management.[34] In October 2019, Patreon suspended Benjamin's account, saying he violated their terms of service regarding hate speech.[35] His YouTube channel was banned on December 3, 2019, for violations of the site's terms of service.[7] On December 13, he was suspended from Facebook and Instagram for multiple policy violations.[8] He has also been banned by PayPal.[36][37]

In January 2020, Benjamin and one hundred of his fans announced their intent to sue Patreon for $3.5 million for banning him from the platform. Patreon counter-sued 72 of the fans.[35] In July 2020, a judge on the San Francisco County Superior Court denied Patreon's request for a preliminary injunction in the case.[38]

In March 2020, The Daily Dot reported that Benjamin had been attempting to circumvent his social media bans on several platforms to spread disinformation regarding COVID-19. Following the publication of the article, several of Benjamin's new accounts were terminated.[9][unreliable source?] After being banned from YouTube, Benjamin began streaming on DLive, a livestreaming service popular with extremists. In October 2020, Benjamin and Nick Fuentes were the two highest earners on the site.[39] Following a November 2020 report by extremism researcher Megan Squire, DLive suspended several accounts including those belonging to Benjamin and Fuentes.[39]

Personal life

In March 2008, he and Christina Ricci announced they were engaged, but they ended their engagement two months later.[17][40] He later married and had children.[41]

In 2021, after Benjamin began working on a project to create a compound on property he owns in Boundary County, Idaho, county residents filed a complaint with the county commissioners over allegations that he had violated zoning provisions while also expressing concerns that he was forming a "Ruby Ridge style" compound on the property.[42][4][43]

References

  1. ^ a b "Owen Benjamin: What You Need to Know". Anti Defamation League. December 26, 2023. Retrieved February 2, 2024.
  2. ^ a b Einbinder, Nicole (April 11, 2019). "White nationalists continue to post on Instagram, despite a new Facebook policy banning such content". Insider. Archived from the original on April 14, 2019. Retrieved April 14, 2019.
  3. ^ a b Lorenz, Taylor (October 30, 2018). "Instagram Is Teeming With Anti-Semitism". The Atlantic. Archived from the original on March 29, 2019. Retrieved June 2, 2019.
  4. ^ a b c Sommer, Will (June 1, 2021). "Neighbors Fear Bear-Themed Compound Will Be Next Ruby Ridge". The Daily Beast. Archived from the original on June 3, 2021. Retrieved June 27, 2021.
  5. ^ a b Petrizzo, Zachary (December 13, 2019). "Alt-right comedian Owen Benjamin banned from Instagram over anti-Semitic memes". The Daily Dot. Archived from the original on June 29, 2021. Retrieved June 27, 2021.
  6. ^ Wilson, Jason; Squire, Megan (December 19, 2021). "Revealed: Startup Creates Streaming Platform for Extremists on Big-Tech Infrastructure". Southern Poverty Law Center. Archived from the original on February 4, 2023. Retrieved September 12, 2022.
  7. ^ a b Petrizzo, Zachary (December 4, 2019). "Owen Benjamin, alt-right comedian, banned from YouTube". The Daily Dot. Archived from the original on December 6, 2019. Retrieved December 14, 2019.
  8. ^ a b c d Holt, Jared (December 13, 2019). "Instagram and Facebook Suspend Right-Wing 'Comedian' Owen Benjamin". Right Wing Watch. People For the American Way. Archived from the original on December 13, 2019. Retrieved December 14, 2019.
  9. ^ a b c Goforth, Claire (March 24, 2020). "Banned 'alt-right' comedian returns to spread coronavirus misinformation". The Daily Dot. Archived from the original on July 8, 2020. Retrieved July 17, 2020.
  10. ^ a b c Holt, Jared (February 12, 2019). "Owen Benjamin: Another 'Red Pill' Overdose Victim". Right Wing Watch. People for the American Way. Archived from the original on July 17, 2019. Retrieved July 11, 2019.
  11. ^ Kelly, Griffin (March 7, 2018). "Comedian rants for a week about negative reaction to racial joke". Adirondack Daily Enterprise. Archived from the original on May 7, 2024. Retrieved May 7, 2024.
  12. ^ Lioto, Dominick (November 29, 2018). "Look at OZ: Stand-up comic Owen Benjamin". The Oswegonian. Archived from the original on November 29, 2018. Retrieved July 12, 2018.
  13. ^ a b c d e "Oswego native Owen Benjamin to perform at Funny Bone in Syracuse". Oswego County News Now (Press release). August 31, 2016. Archived from the original on July 10, 2019.
  14. ^ Benjamin, Owen [@OwenBenjamin] (March 19, 2024). ""... My dad had developed a severe stutter from the stresses of 1950s working class Chicago with an Irish father and a Czech Jewish mother ..."" (Tweet). Archived from the original on May 11, 2024. Retrieved May 13, 2024 – via Twitter.
  15. ^ a b McCarthy, Sean L. (June 19, 2008). "C-Spot Season 2 on Crackle". The Comic's Comic. Archived from the original on May 9, 2010. Retrieved February 25, 2009.
  16. ^ Frommer, Dan (March 19, 2009). "Lindsay Campbell's New Show, 'Heckle U', Launching Today". Business Insider. Archived from the original on August 19, 2009. Retrieved August 23, 2009.
  17. ^ a b c Schweitzer, Kate (March 17, 2009). "Christina Ricci is Engaged!". Us Weekly. Archived from the original on March 20, 2009.
  18. ^ a b Joe, Berkowitz (December 3, 2018). "Why is Amazon promoting this anti-trans alt right troll's comedy special?". Fast Company. Archived from the original on December 6, 2018. Retrieved December 6, 2018.
  19. ^ Levine, Stuart (September 8, 2009). "Jay Leno adds to posse". Variety. Archived from the original on March 8, 2018.
  20. ^ "Comedian Owen Benjamin Returns As Host Of The Art Directors Guild 20th Annual Excellence In Production Design Awards". Shoot (Press release). November 12, 2015. Archived from the original on March 7, 2018.
  21. ^ "The Next Great Burger on Apple TV". Apple TV. July 20, 2015. Archived from the original on February 8, 2021. Retrieved February 4, 2021.
  22. ^ a b c d e f g h i Mandel, Bethany (April 8, 2019). "How did conservative comedian Owen Benjamin became a darling of the 'alt-right'?". Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Archived from the original on April 16, 2019. Retrieved May 14, 2019.
  23. ^ "Owen Benjamin Uses Fan Suggestions for New Material at CA Improv This Weekend". Broadway World (Press release). November 12, 2015. Archived from the original on June 29, 2021. Retrieved June 27, 2021.
  24. ^ G, Cristina López (February 4, 2019). "PragerU YouTube video features bigoted conspiracy theorist Owen Benjamin". Media Matters for America. Archived from the original on November 16, 2020. Retrieved November 19, 2020.
  25. ^ Multiple sources:
  26. ^ Multiple sources:
  27. ^ Multiple sources:
  28. ^ Dwoskin, Elizabeth (January 21, 2024). "Growing Oct. 7 'truther' groups say Hamas massacre was a false flag". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on April 9, 2024. Retrieved May 13, 2024.
  29. ^ a b Holt, Jared (March 18, 2019). "Owen Benjamin's Rhetoric is Growing More Extreme". Right Wing Watch. People for the American Way. Archived from the original on July 17, 2019. Retrieved July 11, 2019.
  30. ^ a b Gallagher, Danny (December 10, 2019). "Discworld Is Real! Dive into Flat Earth Culture at their Global, Sorry, International Conference". Dallas Observer. Archived from the original on August 5, 2020. Retrieved July 17, 2020.
  31. ^ Holt, Jared (November 29, 2018). "Owen Benjamin: Transgender Rights Movement is a U.N.-Sponsored Eugenics Program". Right Wing Watch. People for the American Way. Archived from the original on June 4, 2019. Retrieved June 2, 2019.
  32. ^ Thalen, Mikael (July 11, 2023). "Conspiracy theorists now think nuclear bombs are fake". The Daily Dot. Retrieved November 7, 2023.
  33. ^ Shuttleworth, Catherine (July 7, 2023). "Conspiracy theorists are trying to claim that nuclear weapons aren't real". Indy100. Archived from the original on July 31, 2023. Retrieved May 13, 2024.
  34. ^ "Owen Benjamin: What You Need to Know". ADL. 2023. Archived from the original on January 22, 2024. Retrieved February 1, 2024.
  35. ^ a b Goforth, Claire (July 6, 2020). "Alt-right comedian asked his fans to sue Patreon. It backfired". The Daily Dot. Archived from the original on July 6, 2020. Retrieved July 17, 2020.
  36. ^ Goforth, Claire (July 8, 2020). "Banned by PayPal and YouTube, this alt-right comedian is back on PayPal and YouTube". The Daily Dot. Archived from the original on June 3, 2021. Retrieved June 27, 2021.
  37. ^ "Court denies Patreon injunction against fans of 'canceled' comedian". i24 News. August 3, 2020. Archived from the original on August 3, 2020. Retrieved May 13, 2024.
  38. ^ "Court denies Patreon injunction against fans of 'canceled' comedian". i24NEWS. August 2, 2020. Archived from the original on August 3, 2020. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
  39. ^ a b Carless, Will (February 5, 2021). "Crowdfunding hate: How white supremacists and other extremists raise money from legions of online followers". USA Today. Archived from the original on June 27, 2021. Retrieved June 27, 2021.
  40. ^ Everett, Cristina (September 7, 2012). "Christina Ricci calls off her engagement to 'All's Faire in Love' co-star Benjamin Owen". New York Daily News. Archived from the original on June 10, 2018. Retrieved June 27, 2021.
  41. ^ Kelly, Griffin (April 7, 2018). "Twitter blocks Owen Benjamin". Adirondack Daily Enterprise. Archived from the original on June 10, 2021. Retrieved June 29, 2021.
  42. ^ Martinez, Victor Corral (May 25, 2021). "New compound forming, residents present zoning violations to commissioners". Bonners Ferry Herald. Archived from the original on May 26, 2021. Retrieved May 26, 2021.
  43. ^ BONSANT, EMILY (June 30, 2022). "P&Z defers to Commissioners on Owen Benjamin application". Bonners Ferry Herald. Archived from the original on January 24, 2024. Retrieved January 24, 2024.
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