Eugenia Cooney

Eugenia Sullivan Cooney (born July 27, 1994) is an American YouTube personality and Twitch broadcaster based in California.[2][3][4] She began her YouTube channel on June 17, 2011 and has over two million subscribers. Cooney uploads vlogs, makeup tutorials, and similar content to her channel.[5][6] She also makes posts regarding mental health. She regularly streams on Twitch where she has over 100,000 followers.[7] Shane Dawson featured Cooney in his podcast, Shane and Friends.[8][9]

Eugenia Cooney
Cooney on YouNow in 2017
Personal information
BornEugenia Sullivan Cooney
July 27, 1994 (1994-07-27) (age 26)
Massachusetts, U.S.
OccupationYouTuber
Height5 ft 5 in (1.65 m) or 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) [1]
YouTube information
Channel
Years active2011–present
Genre
Subscribers2.22 million
Total views240.24 million
100,000 subscribers 2015
1,000,000 subscribers 2016
Updated: 14 July 2020

Cooney's online content has been a subject of much public controversy. In October 2016, petitions were made to ban her from YouTube due to her promotion of dangerous eating habits. Around that time, Cooney stated that she did not have an eating disorder and refrained from discussing her weight and eating habits.

In February 2019, Cooney announced that she would be taking a break from social media. Following this announcement, she left social media entirely until she appeared in a video published by YouTuber Shane Dawson in July 2019 after a five-month break. She has since returned to uploading videos at her regular frequency to mostly negative reception.

YouTube career

Cooney started her YouTube channel in June 2011 and mainly creates videos about fashion. These mostly consist of makeup and clothing styles and routines, as well as some cosplay tutorials. Cooney also often uploads other types of videos, mostly vlogs and shopping videos, many of which feature her mother. Cooney uploads videos to her channel approximately once every week with the exception of a five-month hiatus from February to July 2019.

Eating disorder controversy

Beginning in mid-to-late 2015, Cooney began receiving comments on her videos regarding her weight. These comments pointed out that her appearance showed signs of an eating disorder, possibly anorexia. Comments about her appearance gradually increased in number over time, and in late 2015 Cooney's videos began to regularly receive more dislikes than likes. Comments and speculation around her health further increased, with a number of viewers expressing concern in YouTube videos and in Cooney's livestreams.[10][11]

Change.org petitions

Due to Cooney's underweight appearance, petitions were made by viewers on Change.org to ban her from posting on YouTube.[12] Of these, the most popular garnered over 20,000 signatures; however, Cooney always refrained from publicly addressing the issue of her weight and, when asked about it by viewers during her livestreams, would gloss over them and quickly move on.[13][14] The petitions were eventually taken down by Change.org for violation of community standards.

Hiatus and return

On February 10, 2019, Cooney announced via Twitter that she would be taking a break from social media and "working on this with [her] doctor privately", without mentioning anything specific.[15] For the next five months, there was no activity from Cooney's YouTube channel or any of her social media accounts. On May 31, 2019, Cooney's hairstylist posted a photo of Cooney on Instagram in which she appeared to be in much better condition.[16]

On July 19, 2019, YouTuber Shane Dawson published a video on YouTube titled "The Return of Eugenia Cooney" which features Dawson interviewing Cooney about her activities during her social media break and her experience with her eating disorder.[17] This video marked Cooney's first video appearance on social media since her Twitter announcement five months prior. The same day, Cooney herself uploaded a video to her own channel titled "I'm Back" announcing her return to social media and having worked with her doctor during the break.[18] Cooney gained over 250,000 subscribers within the first 24 hours of the publishing of Dawson's video.[19][20]

Reaction

Dawson and Cooney's videos were both well received on YouTube, initially trending #1 and #2, respectively. Many were glad that Cooney was back and would be making videos again; however, there were mixed reactions outside of YouTube, with several members of the public criticizing Dawson's video for ignoring the details of Cooney's eating disorder and failing to fully address the situation.[21][22]

Jaclyn Glenn

The same day Dawson and Cooney published their respective videos, YouTuber Jaclyn Glenn, a former friend of Cooney's, published a video on her channel featuring herself as well as YouTubers David Michael Frank and Evangeline DeMuro.[23] In it the trio claim that Dawson's video ignores many important details about Cooney's recovery. They also claim that each of them has attempted to discuss Cooney's health with her in the past, but Cooney would always say that she is fine and that there is no problem. The three further explain that prior to Cooney's social media break, the three of them staged an intervention by inviting both Cooney and the Los Angeles Psychiatric Evaluation Team (PET) to Glenn's residence where the PET could interview Cooney.

After the PET met with Cooney, the team placed a 5150 hold on Cooney under the Lanterman–Petris–Short Act and took her into rehab.[24] Glenn goes on to claim that following this decision, Cooney's mother screamed and swore at Glenn over the phone and called the police in an attempt to have Glenn arrested for kidnapping. Following all of this, Glenn has stated that she believes Cooney is still in danger and at very high risk of relapse since Cooney is back with her mother.

Glenn's video was met with mixed reactions, with some thanking her for exposing the truth and others criticizing her for divulging personal information and spreading negativity. Neither Dawson nor Cooney have publicly commented on Glenn's video directly. Cooney has commented on her experience with being placed under a 5150 hold, describing it as a frightening experience.[25]

Filmography
  • Shane and Friends (2016)
  • The Return of Eugenia Cooney (2019)

Awards and nominations
Year Award Show Category Result Ref.
2020 Shorty Awards YouTuber of the Year Nominated [26] [27]

References
  2. Olson, Samantha (2016-10-31). "Will YouTube Star Eugenia Cooney Get Kicked Off? Vlogger's Unhealthy Look, Rumored Anorexia Inspires Change.Org Petition". Medical Daily. Retrieved 2017-09-20.
  3. Weiss, Geoff (2017-05-25). "Studio71 Is Selling A Charity Box For LGBT Pride Month With Miles Jai, Rickey Thompson - Tubefilter". Tubefilter. Retrieved 2017-08-18.
  4. "This US Fashion Vlogger Was Slammed For Being 'Too Thin'". The Quint. Retrieved 2017-09-27.
  5. "Eugenia Cooney". YouTube. Retrieved 2017-06-24.
  6. Pellot, Emerald. "Punk Rock Daughter Lets Mom Give Her A Makeover, But She Has No Idea What She's In For!". LittleThings.com. Retrieved 2017-09-27.
  7. "Eugenia Cooney". Twitch.
  8. Dawson, Shane (2016-10-31). "NEW PODCAST with Eugenia Cooney & @JessButtafuoco!! :)pic.twitter.com/KlhzVrHIgo". @shanedawson. Retrieved 2017-09-20.
  9. "Watch Shane & Friends on Fullscreen". Fullscreen. Retrieved 2017-09-27.
  10. Svperstar. "Eugenia Cooney guest CRYING over how skinny Eugenia is!". YouTube. Retrieved July 15, 2017.
  11. Svperstar. "Eugenia Cooney fan "You would be prettier if you WEREN'T DYING!"". YouTube. Retrieved March 10, 2017.
  12. Raiola, Alyssa (2016-11-01). "People Want YouTube to Ban This Blogger for Being Too Thin. This is an excellent idea". Greatist. Retrieved 2017-08-18.
  13. Stanger, Melissa. "People want to stop this 'seriously underweight' YouTuber from making videos". Revelist.com. Retrieved 2017-08-18.
  14. Soteriou, Stephanie. "Thousands sign petition to ban worryingly thin vlogger Eugenia Cooney from YouTube". Retrieved 2017-09-27.
  15. Cooney, Eugenia. "Hi guys! I appreciate the concern". Twitter. Retrieved February 10, 2019.
  16. Glaze, Virginia. "YouTuber Eugenia Cooney shocks the internet with striking transformation photo". Dexerto. Retrieved June 2, 2019.
  17. Dawson, Shane. "The Return of Eugenia Cooney". YouTube. Retrieved July 19, 2019.
  18. Cooney, Eugenia. "I'm Back". YouTube. Retrieved July 19, 2019.
  19. Tenbarge, Kat. "Less than a day after Shane Dawson posted his latest viral video, this YouTuber who struggles with an eating disorder gained over 250,000 subscribers". Insider. Retrieved July 20, 2019.
  20. Inside Edition Staff. "How Eugenia Cooney's Candor About Battling an Eating Disorder Could Help Others". Inside Edition. Retrieved July 22, 2019.
  21. Crichton, Maddie. "Jaclyn Glenn Raises Concerns Over Eugenia Cooney's Recovery". Rogue Rocket. Retrieved July 22, 2019.
  22. DeFranco, Philip. "The Return Of Eugenia Cooney Controversy, Shane Dawson, Jaclyn Glenn, Hong Kong Chaos, & More". YouTube. Retrieved July 22, 2019.
  23. Glenn, Jaclyn. "The Return Of Eugenia Cooney - The Real Truth (Full Story)". YouTube. Retrieved July 19, 2019.
  24. Song, Sandra. "Eugenia Cooney on Cyberbullying, Recovery and Her Return". Paper. Retrieved 20 August 2019.
  25. Dodgson, Lindsay. "A YouTuber opened up about her friends forcing her into psychiatric hospital because of her eating disorder". Insider. Insider Inc. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
  26. Glaze, Virginia. "Mr Beast, NICKMERCS & more nominated for 2020 Shorty Awards". Dexerto. Dexerto Ltd. Retrieved 21 January 2020.
  27. Street, Mikelle (2020-05-05). "LGBTQ+ Stars Swept the Shorty Awards 2020". Out.
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