YACHT Explain Sex Tape Hoax
Following the revelation that their alleged “sex tape” leak was a hoax, YACHT‘s Jona Bechtolt and Claire Evans have released a statement explaining the thinking behind their stunt. “It’s a project that allowed us to play with science fiction, the attention economy, clickbait journalism, and celebrity sex tapes all at once,” they write. “This was not designed to make money or sell records, but to explore the intersection of privacy, media, and celebrity.”
Yesterday, Bechtolt and Evans wrote a long Facebook post describing the alleged leak of the tape, blaming “one morally abject person.” They claimed to have “commenced legal proceedings” against that person. A few hours later, they announced that they would legally sell the tape through a newly launched website.
Earlier today, the “sex tape” video emerged on Pornhub, and Jezebel reported on an email sent to Gawker Media revealing the band’s plan for the stunt.
In their explanation, Bechtolt and Evans responded to some of the backlash against them:
There is one dark note we want to address. We never make light of victims of any form of sexual abuse. Frankly, it’s disturbing to us that press outlets could make the incredibly irresponsible leap from “celebrity sex tape,” which is the cultural trope this project explicitly references, to “revenge porn,” which is unfunny, disgusting, morally repugnant, and completely unrelated. Even within the fictional narrative we created, there was no violence or exploitation. It was always about agency and proactive empowerment.
However, in their original Facebook post, the pair wrote:
Like anyone, we still deserve to have a choice about what we share with the world. Today we no longer have that choice. But our hope is that you fundamentally understand that choice and you choose not to view a private act that was inadvertently made public. We hope you understand that this is not a delicious scandal. This is an exploitation.
Here is the full text of their statement:
❤️ We’ve written a statement here: https://t.co/9Q6J1Ves3D pic.twitter.com/t2CNtC0qB9
— ˠ ᴬ ꜂ ᴴ ⊤ (@YACHT) May 10, 2016
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