The issue of players speaking out of turn is no longer a stranger to the League of Legends community, especially in the VCS region. The topics that players can speak out about are endless, sometimes out of frustration towards rivals while ranking up, other times due to the “provocative” nature of their streams, or even touching on sensitive issues… A prime example of such a player’s misstep is Zeros – the only professional player to date who has received a global ban for making insensitive comments related to a sensitive topic (Covid-19) while livestreaming.
Recently, another familiar figure in the Vietnamese League of Legends scene has found himself embroiled in a “controversial” situation. Specifically, this individual is the “far-off son” Jankos, who is currently playing for the “national circus” G2 Esports in the jungle position. During a recent stream, he encountered trouble when a fan with the nickname “MyKneeGr***” donated to Jankos on his Twitch channel. As a habit, he read the name of the donor out loud during the livestream.
However, Jankos’ fans quickly realized that there was something “off” about this because the pronunciation of the username closely resembles a term with racist connotations. Many comments flooded in towards Jankos. After a few minutes of reflection, the “far-off son” understood that he had just made a mistake.
However, Jankos mentioned that the situation might not be too serious since he was just following his habit unintentionally. But he also reminded his viewers to be cautious with their words because the law does not differentiate between accidental and intentional remarks; saying something inappropriate will certainly lead to consequences. Currently, Jankos’ stream channel remains intact, suggesting that Twitch might have sympathy for the G2 player’s case.
From Jankos’ advice, it is clear that once you are a public figure with influence in the community, you need to be cautious with your words, controlling all activities during livestreams, especially regarding sensitive topics. Jankos experienced moments of anxiety, while Zeros faced a permanent ban. These are valuable lessons for Esports players in general and League of Legends players in particular when speaking on live streams.