A tl;dr of social media influencer Joey Swoll’s (Joey Sergo) latest controversy: When Hulk Hogan (Terry Bollea) passed away, Swoll posted a recycled Halloween video of himself working out in a Hulk Hogan costume, saying that the Hulkster personally sent him the costume. Given Hulk Hogan’s documented history of using racial slurs, admitting to being a racist, his disdain for his adult daughter dating an African American man, and expressing negative stereotypes of Black men, the comment section was not one big happy fitness family. When viewers of his TikTok livestream mentioned their concern, Swoll went on the offensive and followed up by calling on viewers to go after “coloured” people who posted tributes to Hulk Hogan. The following day, Swoll deleted the gym video and posted an apology video for his aggressive reaction.
A Pseudo-Apology and Self-Imposed Cancellation
An influencer’s attempt at accountability raised more questions than it answered
Swoll started by saying that he owes his “followers, [his] community, and all of social media an apology.” This is a broad stroke because not all of those people deserve an apology. The apology should be directed to the community he hurt by idealizing the man who spoke racist words and held racist ideology.
Hulk Hogan has a documented history of using the n-word, self-identifying as a racist, and holding negative stereotypes about Black men. The apology should be to the Black community, not to the world in general. Swoll’s apology overlooks that a specific group was the target of Hogan’s vitriol, and it is the Black community that deserves an apology- not all of social media.
Swoll pinned a comment in which his girlfriend, influencer and LAFD paramedic Crystal Reneau, identifies as being from a biracial family and defends him as being loving and respectful, stating that she and her family stand with him. (Reneau’s mother is Filipina.) Pinning a comment from a person who is biased- as she is his intimate partner- was questionable, especially considering that Hulk Hogan is not on record as being racist against the Filipino community.
Nuance is missing here: It is not a case of “If you’re not white, you’re Black.” Reneau’s biracial identity is irrelevant in this specific situation, so one must wonder why she even mentioned it in the first place. Even if his girlfriend was from a racial group that was disparaged by Hogan, she was not elected as the spokesperson for the BIPOC community. Pinning her comment on his Instagram post seems to show a lack of awareness around selective racism and interpersonal bias.
On Instagram, the majority of top comments say that he shouldn’t have apologized or shouldn’t have removed the costume video. But again, the apology was not supposed to be for his entire community.
Further, Swoll said in the caption of his apology video that he takes full accountability for what he said and how he handled the pushback by getting defensive. If this is a personal feeling he has, his fans have no right to tell him he did nothing wrong or that he shouldn’t apologize. Fans need to respect his decisions for self-improvement rather than hyping up the version of him that is emotionally stunned and is still learning and evolving.
The caveat here is that if the apology was for becoming reactive and defensive on a livestream (and the removal of the video was an unspoken apology for being friendly with a self-identified racist), then it is an apology to the general public. But fans should encourage him to seek ways to deal with confrontation without resorting to defensiveness, social aggression, and hostility. If the aggressive persona that he presents almost daily on his socials is close to who he is in reality- quick to anger, intolerant of others’ opinions, and with perceived moral superiority- then he owes it to himself to be better, and fans should support that.
Joey’s post-controversy behavior across social media platforms has varied. He posted an Instagram story that ended with “I am done with social media.” On X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook, his statement ended with “I am done.” On Facebook, his post included the line, “Please remember me and smile.” Considering his past with substance abuse and a deliberate attempted overdose, these statements concerned some followers.
As of now, his apology video is not on either his X or Facebook pages, leaving those who follow him on only those platforms with just a cryptic message and no context that suggests he is just laying low for a few days.
His post about being done with social media talked about his personal troubles. He said that despite all the good he’s done and the people he’s inspired, it was all for naught. “But no matter how much good you do, people just wait for a reason to hate you and tear you down,” he testified. It seems that he feels unfairly held accountable.
He acknowledged that he was wrong. The negative attention he is receiving now is the same as what his followers- the so-called Swoll Patrol- inflict on the subjects of his content. But because he has a higher profile than the people featured in his videos, the attention is louder. The subjects of his videos often delete or deactivate their accounts, go private, or turn off comments, much to the joy of the Swoll Patrol.
Swoll has said that he “is done with social media,” but the caption on his apology video says that he is still learning and growing and that he will do better. If that is his ambition, it would be wise to stay active on social media and demonstrate this growth. Rolling over and hiding does not benefit followers who are cheering for his personal development.
On his Instagram story, where he announced that he is quitting social media, he said that he has helped people- but now that he needs help, kindness, and compassion, it’s not being reciprocated. He seems to be unaware that no one owes him anything- especially not the people he hurt- and that kindness should not be based on the expectation of future reciprocity. Again, the focus is on him being “victimized” rather than being accountable for his actions and the hostility toward people in his TikTok livestream.
Swoll said that his “brand” was based on holding people accountable. Followers are hoping for a personal promise of improvement — not a promise from his image or personal brand. In his TikTok livestream, he referred to “coloured” people and was informed that the term is “person of colour.” He apologized and said he would never use the word “coloured” again in reference to a person of colour. Shouldn’t further self-improvement be witnessed by those he hurt? Why shouldn’t his followers- the people who respect and admire him- get to witness his personal transformation? He could help educate others by not quitting social media.
INFLUENCER APOLOGY REVIEW: 2 Protein Shakes out of 5
Joey’s apology gets two protein shakes because he made an attempt, whether on his own or on advice by his team, and because he didn’t pull out a ukulele and sing his apology (à la Colleen Ballinger) or while sitting on a golden couch (Jeffree Star-style). His apology could get bumped up to 2.5 protein shakes out of 5 if he pinned the apology video to remind fans and followers that he is not perfect and can make mistakes, just like the subjects of his content. As of present, the video is being buried in his newer videos… soon to be lost in his posts.
Joey returned, without acknowledging his livestream temper tantrum, with a video where he said that he is the one to “call out bullies in the gym” as though there are no other creators who make this content. He said, “I am not going anywhere, and you are not going to cancel me.” He seems to not remember that he had thousands of fans encouraging him to retract his apology, repost the costume video, and who were simping on him. His “cancellation” came in the form of his Instagram story and social media posts in which he held a pity party, said that he quit, and listed his personal grievances as reasons for giving up. He said that he took a few days to “get his mind right”, but does not state whether that time was spent on tending to his ego, reflecting on how he caused the backlash aimed at him, educating himself, or re-evaluating the character of the people with whom he chooses to surround himself. He claimed to have received “thousands and thousands of messages” from people telling him not to quit. That is exactly the point- he chose to quit.
… And He Returns
His return video said that he “is not quitting and [is] done apologizing.” Done apologizing??? When did he apologize to begin with? To whom did he apologize, and for what transgression? Was the “apology” video for the Black community (African American and outside of America), to the people who buy his cooking sauces that were prominently displayed during his freak-out on the livestream, or to everyone including those who were never wronged by Hulk Hogan? One genuine apology, straight from the heart, is enough. The rage quit and playing the victim mitigated any responsibility or accountability he took. One apology, just one, was enough- no one was asking for repeated apologies, and no one forced him off the internet. There was no “leftist” or “woke” agenda, as the only person who silenced him on social media was himself. Cancel culture does not exist, so the only way for one to be “cancelled” is to stop posting. Fans will always follow or subscribe, and even if one is banned on a platform (which did NOT happen to him), there will always be another platform that will welcome that influencer.
HE DOTH PROTEST TOO MUCH, METHINKS
Swoll’s videos since removing his self-cancellation have been… interesting. The first video is captioned with “Do better, NOT be perfect.” This is different than his usual stern scold of “You need to do better. Mind your own business.” He recognizes that he can’t hold people to a standard of perfection that he, himself, falls short of. His comment section has replies celebrating that comments on the subject’s page have been deactivated. His next post is of an African American man who is defending him, then Swoll stitched a recycled clip of himself in a bubble bath playing with bath toys. It’s giving “I’m not racist, I have Black friends” vibes.
The next video is delivered in Spanish. Good job; I guess diversity is the way to prove one is not racist… although in a livestream just days earlier, he defended Hulk Hogan because “the man was nice to me… he made a mistake… people make mistakes in life.” Racism is a choice, not a mistake. Ignoring racism is a choice. Every white supremacist has other white folks who they are kind to, and some racists- like Hulk Hogan- have done great things that brought joy to our childhoods. But that doesn’t excuse Joey Swoll’s half-assed “apology” that seemed to be made in haste without any concrete plans for self-improvement. It doesn’t mean that Swoll can post a vague pseudo-apology, play the victim instead of handling the repercussions of his choices, act like people tried to cancel him (when he actually chose to leave the internet), and then come back and hype himself up as a gym hero.
OVERALL REVIEW OF HOW THE SITUATION WAS HANDLED: 1.5 Protein Shakes out of 5.
* This entire apology and fallout can get 4 to 4.5 protein shakes out of 5 if Joey makes a deliberate effort to educate himself on race relations. This must be done off social media and not for content. The lessons he learns while reflecting, self-educating, and getting involved with reputable civil rights groups can be taught through example on social media.
Janice MacGregor 