Just hours ago, social media influencer Kai Cenat caused something of a stir when his planned PS5 console giveaway devolved into a "full-blown riot". Cenat posted to his 6.5 million Twitch followers that he would be giving away 300 PS5s near New York City's anxiety-inducing Union Square station, one of the busiest places in Manhattan.
2000 PlayStation enthusiasts converged on the site, which quickly descended into anarchy. The out-of-control crowd of (allegedly) Millenials and Zoomers tore down barricades, climbed on top of grid-locked cars, and pelted responding NYPD officers with debris.
The resulting fracas was, of course, live-streamed from all angles, necessitating a "Level 4" mobilisation from police to get the situation under control. It took roughly 1000 officers tooled out in riot gear to restore order, and thankfully no major injuries have been reported. Six individuals have been detained in relation to the disturbance, including Kenat. CBS News reports that Kenat did not have a permit for the hastily arranged event.
We'll update this page as the situation develops.
[source cbsnews.com]
Comments 63
Has anybody’s uncle blamed antifa yet?
Come on people, do better!
First of all, the guy announcing that in the world we live in knew what he was doing and is clearly a moron.
As are the ones whom showed up and become a herd of stereotypical examples of childlike behavior.
Humanity is a mess.... If you are going to stand for something fine, but this?!
Social media "influencers" are vile idiots supported by pathetic losers: I don't care if it's this clown or Andy "Raper" Tate you're talking about; the "influencer" internet is a cesspool of stupidity and the celebration of the worst aspects of human culture. Don't just arrest these people; let's rather load them into a space shuttle and launch them into the sun. You know in your heart it's the right thing to do.
@Wormwood23 "Influencers seem popular today, here's another story of a vile pair
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leicestershire-66165180
What a bunch of idiots!
Removed - trolling/baiting
The issue with this is it will increase his Internet following. Then more idiots/him Internet personalities will try similar stunts to get/increase a fan base. This ***** needs to get nipped before even more chaos ensues.
@Wormwood23 someone somewhere else posted "well now we know how to get them on the trains". Pretty similar post really. careful what you wish for I suppose.
@4kgk2 my attempt on Twitter, "A parallel event was allegedly held nearby in an effort to offload surplus Stadia stock. Attendees reportedly refused interview requests and declined to comment."
Im from new york.the legendary queens new york.and i saw this and that is wild.a lot of people came to get theyre ps5😀.haha.word up son
@Wormwood23 I will absolutely throw money at this project, let me know when it starts
God will not forgive is for 2023
And I mean, if you want to give away consoles you do it right: you donate them to a local Boys and Girls Club or similar neighborhood nonprofit (this is what my wife and I & our friends have done), you don't cause a riot. F'n moron.
What a imbecile he should at least be forced to pay whatever the city wasted on his desperate attention seeking stunt
He's being charged with two counts inciting a riot and unlawful assembly. Perhaps some people just shouldn't be famous.
News talking about prison time but the actual riots and looting were fine
Y'know I'm glad he's being charged. Influencers seem to get away with everything nowadays but that doesn't mean they're above the law.
Read he got charged for inciting a riot.
I swear the only thing standing between civilization and us being animals is law and order. Smh.
We really need to retire the word influencer.
Just don't get atall why people obsess over 'influencers' ...could understand more if they had a unique talent or something
And who payed for those 1000 officers, the tax payer 😅
Some people will make any excuse to riot. Hope the yanks are better at prosecutions than we are. Then again it’s NY, not that much better than Cali.
Removed - unconstructive
@Wormwood23 Sounds like a waste of a perfectly good space shuttle.
Removed - off-topic
Love how in this era of internet stupidity, you get everyone with their 'cool bro' mentality banging on about how they are setting the world alight with their 'individuality' and efforts to stand out from the crowd - but then just seem to constantly follow and copy everybody else. It's a bit like fashion - only with substantially more idiots...
Whats the issue here he made this problem hold him financially responsible for the damage. This kids don't care about responsibility the only thing they care about is getting rich what a role models. Let them pay for the damage that is what hurts them.
Influencers are a disease a Tate that totally destroys the youth with disgusting views towards women. The man if you can call him that is a joke that prays on the weak male community for selling them a easy solution where there is none.
Look at some stars like a Brianna that gets beaten to a inch of her life to go back to her abuser who should have been locked away for ages ago already.
I would go as far with saying that celebrities warp the mind of the youth with disgusting messages. How to get rich quick without any decency and self-respect.
Another attention seeking bellend,causes havoc
@Mauzuri im a child of the 70s/80s and yes the Internet disappearing for a few months would be the bestest of things,I have two young children 9 and 12 ,and its because of the Internet they talk weird 😂😂
@KaijuKaiser exactly this. The west is finished sadly.sorry to be political I know it’s frowned upon on here
I still feel we should give this influencer the benefit of the doubt. I havn't seen his messages for people to come to New York and therefore cannot judge if he had ill intentions in mind, like inciting a riot and cause uproar. Or that it was a miscalculated judgment of the situation.
If he had honest good intentions then it feels wrong to hold him accountable for the reactions of his "fans".
Having said that, they should punish those participating in the riots severely!
@IndoorEnthusiast nah no cars set on fire or shops looted. This one is caused by different idiots.
The things people will do for stuff. Be nice if people had that sorta energy to help others.
Removed - off-topic; user is banned
Knobheads
He has been banned from Twitch. Here’s hoping it’s permanent
@Cashews lol okay, fair enough 😂
The problem is not “Influencers”.
The problem is savages that have no place in civilised society.
What I have just said may very well be construed as “racist”, but that does not make it any less of a fact. You get a huge number of violent savages congregating in one place, and then you act surprised when they all act like violent savages. What did you expect to happen?
Sony should make a whole ad campaign out of this cluster****
"PS5 - it's a riot!"
@Perturbator
“It’s for the slayers”
@Perturbator "Playstation - Lose Your Humanity"
My wife saw this on the news and told me about it. It was reported as an "influencer" giving away consoles, not PS5s specifically. When she told me that, I told her if more than a dozen people showed up, they certainly were not giving away Xboxes. I was right.
@Ken_Kaniff when society collapses, we are in trouble..
@tallythwack the sad truth is people who are attached to the internet and social media will crumble, but people born before this time will be totally fine without it, we lived in a past where it was not even a part of our lives, it would be a interesting turn of events if that happened, i would be busy reading physical books and playing retro games in the meantime 😂
Definitely not the first sketchy story involving Kai Cenat.
@huyi is there any other way to read books, I just can't read them off a screen ,it just feels odd
Imagine thinking you have some form of influence after becoming a millionaire mainly via donations. Brain cells are lost watching these streamers & 60 second clips, I feel sorry for the younger generation, they will have an attention span like a gold fish.
I cant wait for joeybtoonz to cover this on youtube 🤣
@EYEBALL the younger generation isn't the problem here.
I don’t know who this arsehole is. At first I thought,200 free ps. Great publicity. But he’s just a trump follower
why do people these days like to be influenced?
Isnt that a bad thing ?
Lock this garbage human being up and let him rot in a jail cell
@mckracken I'd have to say that people have loved to be influenced since long before the internet. I think I could make some fairly accurate comparisons to a couple thousand years ago, honestly.
It's interesting seeing people say that society has fallen so low. As opposed to when, is what I'd like to know.
I’m enjoying the benefits of diversity !
YAWN contemporary times are so boring and trivial.
https://youtu.be/oZVA9ZAxGAU
What a massive douche.
@GKT The internet just amplifies it and legitimises things that probably shouldn’t be.
@Cashews With all due respect, he tried that before, and he was indicted for it. It was notably worse than what's being discussed in this article.
@Arnna Definitely. You can only amplify the volume of something that already exists.
@KundaliniRising333 Agree !! 100% with how bad it is in the USA right now you would think people would be protesting the real issues we got going on such Gas going up and down by 25 to 50 cents over night/The cost of grocerys/The housing crisis/ How were getting ate up in taxes and a Crime sydenicate running the white house and a president who just don't fall down stairs he falls up them too. 10 to 15 years ago they would be protest over real things like this that effect our day to day living. Today we got this generation brainwashed by media and as the topic said influences! When I was in school we was taught not to be influenced by no one that it is of a weaker mind. Who knows what they teach these days because it's sure not common since.
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