Do we like Germán Garmendia?
Our score: 7 out of 10. Decent record and real giving, held back by one nasty 2014 clip and a thin trail since.
Germán Garmendia is one of the biggest YouTubers in the Spanish-speaking world. He started out with the comedy channel HolaSoyGerman, then added the gaming channel JuegaGerman, which went on to pass 50 million subscribers. The page that matters for most Spanish-speaking kids who grew up online is basically his.
The big stain is a 2014 gameplay video of Beyond: Two Souls that resurfaced in September 2018. Narrating a scene in a bar, he said that going there alone was “es la mejor forma de buscar ser violada, sinceramente”, and listed things women should never do. Viewers pointed out that much of his audience is young.
His response was a roughly ten-minute apology video. He said everything he said in those 20 seconds was “completamente asqueroso e ignorante”, and that the clip didn't represent who he is. La Tercera was unimpressed, arguing the video followed the usual YouTuber apology format and spent too long pointing at other comedians' jokes.
On the harm check, that clip is the only thing that turned up: no campaigning against LGBTQ+ or trans people, no anti-vax or climate-denial material, no conspiracy slide and no dodgy co-stars in what I found. The record is thin, though, so that's what the searches showed, not a deep audit of years of videos. An apology only counts if behaviour changes, and nothing like it has surfaced since.
In May 2023, Spanish YouTuber DalasReview accused him of promoting a trading website in a way that misled followers. Garmendia said he had backed it to support a friend, later became suspicious, pulled out, and apologised to his audience. It is a real mark on the good-person side, but it was owned quickly and nothing further has surfaced.
The good stuff is real. He has been Make-A-Wish Chile's ambassador since April 2018. In December 2021 he joined the Teletón broadcast by video call and donated 30 million Chilean pesos, urging viewers to also reach into their pockets.