Opinion | YouTuber comes under controversy, what happens next will shock you

YouTuber Dhar Mann has come under controversy after recent allegations that he isn’t paying his actors enough to afford rent and that he didn’t show up to a meeting to discuss the pay issues, despite being asked to attend by the actors. Photo collage by ANGELINA HICKS, editor-in-chief

Scrolling through YouTube at one point, you may have come across videos titled “GOLD DIGGERS DUMP Their Boyfriends, INSTANTLY REGRET IT!” or “Rude Bartender Humiliates A Poor Woman, She Instantly Regrets It!,” among others. These videos, which usually focus on teaching good morals to young audiences, are all helmed by Dhar Mann, who has almost 18 million subscribers.

On Feb. 6, former Dhar Mann Studios actor Colin A. Borden posted a TikTok video in which he explained why he, Mair Mulroney and other former actors from the studio were protesting outside a sound stage in Burbank. The allegations brought forth by the actors focus on them not being paid enough to afford rent and Mann not attending a meeting to discuss this matter, despite his presence being requested by the actors.

Renee Elefante, managing editor

Other allegations include the removal of a mural commemorating Carl Judie, a fellow actor who passed away in February 2021, and actors not receiving their 1099 tax forms.

In light of the allegations, some viewers began commenting statements like, “What happens in the dark always comes to light,” which garnered hundreds of likes. This is pretty ironic, especially since several videos before the allegations surfaced contained that line, and these allegations completely contradict the good morals that Mann preaches in all of his videos.

In response to the protests and the actors’ videos, Mann posted a multi-slide statement on his studio’s Instagram (since deleted) as well as a post on his YouTube channel’s community page. Mann alleged that the actors know what they are signing up for and that extras are paid at $18 an hour while actors with a speaking role are paid between $33 and $44 an hour.

If these rates are indeed true, then the actors are definitely in a better spot than other individuals in California, seeing that the minimum wage is currently $15.50 per hour. Since several actors are alleging that the studio’s pay rates aren’t enough for them to afford rent (on top of the other gigs they are able to get), one option would be for them to turn to YouTube and upload content that they’d be able to monetize.

These actors have garnered a following from their time with Dhar Mann Studios, so they shouldn’t have a problem attracting subscribers. Plus, they’d be able to collaborate with other actors and YouTubers, possibly opening up a new path for a gig in the process.

There’s also the option of doing brand partnerships, whether it would be done on YouTube or Instagram. YouTubers such as Canadian comedian Ryan George and U.S.-based comedian Steven He have done brand partnerships in the past, finding creative ways to advertise a brand’s products while making their viewers laugh and smile throughout.

As for the meeting to discuss the pay issues, Mann stated in an Instagram story that all formal meeting requests from actors would start with the studio’s human resources manager or Head of Production, and he also stated that “it was never communicated that (he) would attend.” He also explained that since the actors had walked out of the meeting a few minutes after it started without explaining their concerns, the studio asked them to put it in writing so that they could be addressed.

Mulroney addressed Mann’s statement and the allegations brought up by Borden in a Feb. 9 YouTube video where she reacted to a video by Jarvis Johnson! GOLD that looked at some of these allegations. Mulroney stated that while HR was more than welcome to be at the meeting, the actors had repeatedly requested for Mann himself to be there, and upon seeing that he wasn’t, decided to walk out and begin the protests.

While Mann is indeed busy with running Dhar Mann Studios and his other company, a makeup company called LiveGlam, it’s disappointing that he did not make the time to attend that initial meeting with his actors, including those who have been with him since the channel’s infancy years. 

Even if the actors had used more passive language when requesting a meeting, wouldn’t any employer who respected his/her/their employees try to attend it, even if they had to call in over the phone or on a Zoom call? Especially in the wake of the pandemic leading to more virtual options, there’s definitely some more ways that higher-ups in a company can communicate with their employees. 

Due to some false information Mann alleges was spread by the actors, and the impact this has had on him and his family, he has not met with the protestors since. Mann also stated that actors can submit their feedback through Anonymous Actor Surveys and Anonymous Actor Feedback Boxes, the latter of which are located outside of the studios. Mann also stated that the 1099 forms would be submitted through PayPal.

Filling out a survey or dropping off something in the feedback box might be more efficient for the employer, but it lacks the human connection that a meeting offers for both employers and employees since attending one makes it feel as though both sides are hearing (or at least trying to hear) the other and work towards a compromise. Filling out a survey or using the feedback box could also make employees wonder whether they’re actually being heard or if their concerns will ever be addressed. 

According to both companies’ LinkedIn pages, Dhar Mann Studios has over 100 employees and LiveGlam has over 30 employees. If either of these companies were the size of Google, a meeting with the CEO wouldn’t be practical at all, so meeting with someone in HR would have to be an option. But a CEO of a company that doesn’t even have a couple hundred employees should definitely be attending the meeting, even if they have to do so remotely.

Other actors, including Katherine Norland, a veteran actor who has been with the studio since 2018, have come out in defense of Mann, stating that their experiences with him have been nothing but positive. Norland stated that while she personally hasn’t been mistreated by Mann in any way, she wasn’t going to discredit her former fellow colleagues.

Nathan Ing, who acted for Dhar Mann Studios from 2018 until this year, addressed Mann’s statement in a Feb. 10 YouTube video, specifically on the contracts and the payments. Ing stated that whenever the actors are approached by Mann, they will be told that they will be needed for an X number of days, but they are not told about the script or their role until they sign the contract.

Upon finding out that they are only needed for a few lines (if they are playing a smaller role) and only have to show up for a couple of days, the actors can’t accept other projects in the meantime since they don’t know when they’ll be filming for Mann. Ing stated that this experience has been unique to his time with Dhar Mann Studios.

It’s definitely strange that the actors would not be informed of crucial information like what role they’re playing or when they’ll be needed on set until after signing the contract. Especially since Mann is aware that his actors are contracted and they most likely are constantly looking for other gigs, the actors should be told about their roles and filming dates in advance of signing so that they can figure out their schedules and not have to turn down other roles just because they don’t know when they have to be on set.

Dhar’s response also comes off as a standard PR response, and it’s even more questionable given the history of his previous company. In 2014, he was convicted of five felony counts for defrauding the City of Oakland and pled “no contest.” No contest refers to when the defendant “accepts the conviction but avoids a factual admission of guilt.”

As a result of this conviction, he had to pay out almost $44.4K and be put on five years of probation. The Alameda County District Attorney’s Office filed a civil lawsuit in 2012, stating that “Mann simply redeposited the checks to his bank account, writing on the back of the checks ‘not used for intended purpose.” This conviction no longer exists in Mann’s criminal record, however, since he had this expunged from his criminal record in 2018, according to an interview he gave in 2021 with The New York Times.

While it’s commendable that Mann completed his sentence and has acknowledged his error in a LiveGlam blog post, the knowledge that he has been convicted of defrauding in the past (although this doesn’t exist anymore in his criminal record) definitely makes it harder to trust him and the response he’s given. 

It’s also upsetting that, aside from deleting his Instagram statement, Mann has continued publishing videos on the studio’s channel daily and acting as if it’s business as usual. 

Since the studio’s target audience is younger viewers, it’s important that the channel doesn’t just only teach good morals through its videos, but it should also reflect those morals in its everyday operations.

Now that Mann has emerged as a role model of sorts, he must keep in mind his younger viewers and try his best to uphold the morals he teaches. And, when he makes a mistake, he must come clean with them, take accountability and strive to do better.