MrBeast has given away a lot of turkeys. In fact, he has given away a lot in general via his organization MrBeast Philanthropy. But is all as it seems?
MrBeast famously gave away about ten thousand turkeys last year, a nice little gift for Thanksgiving, helping a bunch of under-privileged people out. It was a sweet video, as MrBeast videos go (after all, MrBeast's videos are usually pretty loud and obnoxious by design), with a whole lot of people showing up for Beast Philanthropy's biggest food-drive yet. You have to give it to him, he got people to turn up, he gave a bunch of free stuff away and made a lot of people very happy. I thus want to start by saying that this column shouldn't be considered a criticism of MrBeast, but more something that's just kind-of interesting, and you should read (read me, please, read me!). What is the point of me bringing up MrBeast, turkeys, and all of this bollocks? Well, it can all be explained in four f**king words: the turkeys are sponsored.
That's right, motherf**kers. The motherf**king turkeys are motherf**king sponsored and there's nothing you can motherf**king do about it. Are you listening to me, Reginald, are you listening to me? The turkeys are sponsored! Are you sponsored? Am I sponsored? No, none of us are sponsored, only the turkeys! Look out, folks, they're comin' for your wallets. Look, those four words are insanely funny, and I wanted to spin the joke out for as much as I could. Is that enough? Yeah, probably, but you can almost certainly expect a few more jokes like that throughout the rest of this-here column. You don't like it? Go read a f**king book. Jesus.
The thing about philanthropy of this ilk is that self-motivation and self-congratulation is always a factor. Now, that's not to say that it is a bad thing that people want to do good, I am not so cynical as to say that a philanthropist like MrBeast purely does it to give himself a nice pat on the back and justify the millions of bucks that he has raked in over the last few years. Instead, I am trying to make a point, and it isn't just that the turkeys are sponsored. After repeating those four words so many times, it has come to my attention that it was pretty darn obvious that the turkeys are sponsored. MrBeast literally explained that in the video. The weird thing to me, though, is how cavalier he is about promoting this brand. They are donating a whole lotta turkeys, sure, but the entire fundraising video plays out more like an add for Jennie-O Turkeys and, by extension, their parent company Hormel Foods.
This might all seem like the start of a "blah, blah, bad company, blah, blah" rant, but it's not. It's just an important aspect of MrBeast's philanthropy that he can't simply use the enormous mass of money that he has personally accrued to help feed these people but instead has decided to partner with a giant conglomeration to (by extension) promote their brand. Now, look, I will go back on what I literally just said but simply for a second, because I don't want to be like your younger sister Jenny who just can't go on about how you keep eating meat and how it's bad for the environment and "Hey, Reginald, is that a turkey you're eating? Murderer!" All I want to say is that it is profoundly cynical for a giant company like Hormel Foods / Jennie-O to participate in a philanthropic drive like this and use it as a marketing exercise considering some of the stuff they have been accused of over the last few years.
Yet, the world, of course, keeps spinning. There is no denying the innate goodness of giving 10,000 turkeys away to people so that they can cut down on the cost of buying a turkey for Thanksgiving themselves or, perhaps, get a turkey when otherwise they may not have been able to afford one. There is also no denying that MrBeast, in that almost 4-minute video displayed the strengths he has developed at making content go viral and keeping his audience entertained. After all, the video above, called "I Fed 10,000 Families For Thanksgiving!", has now amassed over six million views (as of writing) since it released on the 24th of November last year. That's one darn-successful bloody video and, in marketing terms, an insanely successful advertisement. Especially seeing as it is not looked at as an ad but more as a philanthropic gesture of "goodness".
I am not here to cast aspersions on MrBeast's intentions with this kind of video. He wants to have a successful YouTube channel and shoot a bunch of that money and reach into philanthropy that does, genuinely, do a lot of good in the world. What I doubt, instead, is whether this giant turkey company feels the same way. After all, these turkeys were sponsored, and he did tell people literally that "I forbid you from buying a turkey from any other brand for this thanksgiving". Come on, guys, that's an ad, and they clearly know it (they actually make fun of it in the video so, yeah, they're aware). Look, obviously the turkeys have to come from somewhere and if you are buying ten thousand of them, then you are going to need to get some kind of sponsorship deal or, perhaps, a partnership. That's why I don't think that there are any weird motives from MrBeast here, I just think that it's interesting to think about all of this.
The work that MrBeast has done over the last few years, indeed, the success that he has had, is not lessened by a partnership with one of these giant food monopolies. He is not responsible for any wrongdoings they have been accused of and, Reginald, this is not me telling you or your sister Jenny to not watch his videos. If you find them fun, then get on there, enjoy them, why not? But also realize that when you see a piece of content like that, claiming to be philanthropy but sponsored by a big company, this might not be all that it seems. In fact, as I said in the title of this column, nothing is as it seems. It's all bulls**t, bro. The turkeys are sponsored.
Yes, indeed. The turkeys are sponsored. The turkeys are seasoned. The turkeys are all around us, in different sizes and forms. They are delicious. They suck sometimes. Some people love them. Some people hate them. Most people have an opinion on them in some way or another. What does it all mean, though, what does this mean for you and me? Well, it's just about opening your eyes to the truth, having fun with your time (like I have had writing this utter nonsense of a column) and moving on. The turkeys are sponsored. They are. But that doesn't need to worry you, it just needs to interest you. That, indeed, is the spice of life. As well as salt and pepper, of course.
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