Wendigoon (YouTuber)

Overview

Wendigoon is an American YouTuber known for his horror and true crime videos. The creator was involved in a controversy in December 2023 after people on Twitter / X accused him of harboring far-right beliefs. The rumors ignited a viral debate on the internet, as well as jokes about the YouTuber having conservative beliefs.

History

Wendigoon, whose real name is Isaiah Markin, joined YouTube on July 19th, 2019, with a focus on horror and true-crime-themed videos in which he would dissect the lore and facts behind various long-running internet stories in a typically soothing fashion.^[1] His earliest YouTube^[2] video was posted on September 5th, 2020, titled “THE GUNTUBER TIER LIST,” in which he shared a tier list of his favorite YouTubers that create gun-related content. The post (shown below) amassed over 205,000 views and 11,000 likes in three years.

His first viral video^[3] focused on horror content was uploaded on October 13th, 2020, titled “The TRUE Horror of Local 58,” which is an essay explanation/analysis regarding the Local 58 creepypasta. The video (shown below) amassed more than 2.3 million views and 95,000 likes in three years.

Wendigoon’s Far-Right Beliefs Rumor

On December 4th, 2023, Wendigoon was accused of allegedly harboring far-right beliefs on X^[4] by @Kukiweed, who made a post (has since been deleted) claiming that the YouTuber was following and engaging with some internet accounts that could be considered alt-right or controversial, including the 2020 Wisconsin Shooter Kyle Rittenhouse. The post (shown below) received roughly 11,500 likes and 1,000 reposts in three weeks.

The rumor became a viral debate topic on X a few days later, as other users noted some additional questionable accounts Wendigoon supposedly interacted with, including the largely right-wing social media account of Parler. For instance, on December 6th, 2023, X^[5] user @curlysquared shared a screenshot (shown below) showing Wendigoon following right-wing social media accounts, which amassed roughly 654 likes and 123 retweets in three weeks.

Wendigoon’s Response

On December 6th, 2023, the YouTuber weighed in on the debate saying "Some rude & slanderous things have been said about my character and I just want to clarify that I am not right-wing or bigoted or anything besides thankful for my opportunity to make goofy YouTube. The only thing I believe in is loving God and my wife." His post (shown below) amassed over 91,000 likes and 7,100 retweets in three weeks.

Online Presence

Online, Wendigoon has a divided reputation, going from people who like his true-crime based content and those who think his videos are mainly “plot summary” reading of popular stories on the internet. For instance, on December 24th, 2023, X^[6] user @schmarrison posted one of the YouTuber’s thumbnail of a 5-hour video essay that he thinks “this guy just reading the book into a camera, ending with the analysis of ‘the villain is evil.’” The post (shown below) amassed more than 2,000 likes and 54 retweets in five days.

On December 13th, 2023, X^[7] user @cks19111 shared a clip of Wendigoon paired with a POV text saying “POV: you are my homeschooled son and I am teaching you history.” The video (shown below) received roughly 4,300 views and 126 likes in two weeks.

Personal Life

Wendigoon was born in Tennessee on June 2nd, 1999. He mentioned that he is of Cherokee descent from his grandfather's side.^[8] He was inspired by other YouTubers like Markiplier and other creators to start his YouTube journey.

Search Interest

External References