Twitch removed the popular PogChamp emote from its streaming platform, following comments made by the emote star about the violent riots at the U.S. Capitol last night. The announcement came just hours after the face of PogChamp, the personality of the fighting game Ryan “Gootecks” Gutierrez, made fiery comments about social media disturbances, “encouraging more violence”.
“We cannot, in good conscience, continue to allow the use of the image”, Twitch said.
Last night, the U.S. Capitol was violently attacked by Trump supporters, spurred on by the president’s baseless allegations of electoral fraud. Guitierrez called for “civil unrest” for one of the protesters who was shot and killed inside the Capitol building, encouraging followers to watch a “horrible” video about his death.
“We made the decision to remove the PogChamp emote after the statements on the face of the emote, encouraging more violence after what happened on Capitol today,” Twitch announced.
PogChamp was an image of Gutierrez’s face in a kind of shocked expression, and was one of the most popular emotes on Twitch. The phrases that came out of him, “pog” and “poggers”, have not only become a big part of Twitch culture, but of gaming culture in general.
“We want the feeling and the use of Pog to stay alive,” added Twitch. “Its meaning is much greater than the person portrayed or the image itself – and it has a big place in Twitch culture. However, we cannot, in good conscience, continue to allow the use of the image. “
Twitch said he will work with the community “to create a new emote for Twitch’s hottest moments”. Their Twitter topic it’s already full of streamers big and small, playing suggestions.