Every Christmas while growing up in Minnesota, Jimmy Darts’ parents gave him $200 in cash: $100 for him and $100 for a stranger. Now, with more than 12 million followers on TikTok and several million more on other platforms, philanthropy It’s his full-time job.
Dartswhose real last name is Kellogg, is one of the largest creators of “kindness content,” a subset of social media videos dedicated to helping strangers in need, often with cash accumulated through GoFundMe and other crowdfunding methods. . An increasing number of creators like Kellogg are donating thousands of dollars (sometimes even more) on camera while encouraging their many followers to donate.
“The Internet is a pretty crazy and pretty nasty place, but good things still happen there,” Kellogg told The Associated Press.
However, not everyone likes these videos, and some viewers consider them performative at best and exploitative at worst.
Critics argue that recording a stranger, often unknowingly, and sharing a video of them online to gain influence on social media is problematic. Beyond influence, content creators can make money from the views they get on individual videos. When views reach millions, as they often do with Kellogg and its peers, they generate enough to work full time as content creators.
Comic Brad PodrayA content creator formerly known online as “Scumbag Dad,” he creates parodies designed to highlight the flaws he finds in this content (and its defenders) as one of the staunchest critics of “kindness content.”
“Many young people have a very utilitarian mentality. They think of things only in measurable value: ‘No matter what he did, he helped a million people,’” Podray said.
From recording devices and methods to topic selection, “kindness content” (like everything on social media) exists on a spectrum.
Some creators approach strangers and ask them for advice or a favor, and if they bite they receive a prize. Others choose to reward strangers they see doing a good deed. Kellogg performs a “kindness challenge,” asking a stranger for something and returning it in kind.
Many of these strangers don’t know they are being filmed. Some creators use hidden cameras and aim to record subjects discreetly. Kellogg said he wants to be “as secretive as possible about it,” but asks for consent to share the video after the interaction. Kellogg said most agree because they look like “a superhero” after their challenge.
Another charity content creator, Josh LiljenquistHe said he uses a GoPro camera and tries to make the footage “extremely noticeable,” adding, “Consent is the most important thing.”
Regardless of the recording method, some view the process as predatory.
“These guys always find someone with cancer or they always find someone who can’t pay their bills because they’re lurking in poor, underserved areas and they’re just waiting,” Podray said. “Looking across the parking lot like, ‘That looks pretty pathetic.’”
Karen Hoekstra, director of marketing and communications at Johnson Center for Philanthropystudies TikTok-based influencer philanthropy and says the videos sometimes take advantage of their subjects.
“The model of the man on the street walking up to a stranger and handing him money is — we’ve all heard this phrase, as terrible as it is — it just seems like poverty porn to me,” Hoekstra said. “It’s exploitation.”
Exploitation calls often arise when creators feature the same people in multiple videos, especially when they appear to be homeless or have a drug addiction. Liljenquist features some people frequently and maintains that his recurring subjects are like his “best friends.”
A user commented on a Video from October 5 That recent content makes it seem like Liljenquist is “playing social worker to get views,” as he posted several videos of a woman his followers suspect is struggling with a drug addiction. He films himself bringing her food, driving her around in his Tesla, and asking her questions that often get one-word answers.
Liljenquist said the criticism doesn’t bother him because he knows their intentions are good.
“I love these people,” he said. “They love me.”
Some criticize the “kindness content” spectacle, but visibility is crucial for the model that relies heavily on crowdfunding. Kellogg has been known to start GoFundMe fundraising campaigns on behalf of the subjects of his videos, typically generating tens of thousands of dollars in donations from viewers.
Kellogg, Liljenquist, and many other creators also use their personal accounts on payment apps like Venmo, CashApp, or PayPal to accept donations.
Tory Martin, also with the Johnson Center as director of communications and strategic partnerships, said transparency about donations “is not an option if it only goes to one individual.”
Although these creators are not subject to standards and regulations like nonprofits, Liljenquist said he feels donor dollars go much further in their hands than in the hands of traditional organizations, which he says are “designed for failure.”
“Nonprofits, not all, there are some good ones, but I would just suggest doing your homework on the nonprofits that you are giving money to because there are a good number of them that take advantage of the system,” said.
Some creators have created foundations or nonprofit organizations to support their work, but that is not a widespread practice.
Podray said he is “100% sure” that some creators are “taking a rake or that some kind of nonsense is going on.” He also maintains that select creators are handing out fake money to cash in on the trend.
Kellogg said watching scam or exploitative videos is difficult for him and worries him: “Oh my gosh, all the moms on Facebook just fell for this and think it’s real.”
While controversy swirls around these videos in some online circles, they are part of a very popular trend on social media with millions of followers and thousands being forced to donate after viewing them.
Although Hoekstra is concerned about the methods of some creators, he said the introduction to charitable giving these videos make for young people is valuable.
“I think anything that can introduce them to philanthropy in a new way and make it accessible and exciting is a good thing,” he said. “Obviously, there will be a learning curve, but I think it’s really exciting to see Philanthropy be so accessible, understandable and embraced in these new spaces and in new ways.”
Some skeptics have become supporters. Kyle Benavidez said he used to see “nice content” on social media and thought it was fake. But after his mother appeared in one of Recent Kellogg Videos and a GoFundMe Kellogg created for her and raised over $95,000 to support her family while her husband is in the hospital with cancer. He said Kellogg’s online persona is true to his real-life character.
“There is a chapel in the hospital and I always go there every morning just to pray. “I hope something happens.” And then Jimmy came into our lives,” said Benavidez, 20. “It’s like God sent him.”
Kellogg shows no signs of slowing down his philanthropic work anytime soon and posts videos on his social platforms almost every day. Still, he says doing good deeds in front of the camera only matters if he and his teammates keep it up when the cameras aren’t rolling.
“You can fool people all day and you can make money and do this and that, but God sees your heart,” he said.
