Twitch Star Appointed To UN Counter-Terrorism Panel

Dr. Alok Kanojia, also known as “Dr K” on Twitch, will be attending a panel hosted by the United Nations counter-terrorism division to discuss the connection between gaming, online communities and violent extremism. 

Kanojia and his wife Kruti founded the organisation Healthy Gamer following his journey out of addiction when he was studying during his undergraduate degree. "The more overwhelmed I'd feel the more I'd play video games. And the more I'd play video games the more overwhelmed I'd feel. And it turned into a vicious cycle," said the streamer in an interview earlier this year. 

With over 560,000 followers and approximately 4,000 viewers tuning in every time, his streams on the HealthyGamer_GG channel have seen guests like Reckful, Asmongold, Mizkif, xQc and Pokimane as well as members of the community who have come forward to share their stories. Kanojia is mindful to state that these streams are not intended to replace professional psychiatric care, yet it transpires that his expertise will be useful to the United Nations in its attempts to understand and prevent acts of terrorism.

A recent report from the Home Office stated that there were 310 referrals to the Prevent anti-extremism programme over the course of last year and that gaming and online spaces are a considerable concern for the government. “If you engage with [these extremist groups] on a YouTube platform, and scroll through the comments section, you may then find links to more encrypted chatrooms or extreme right-wing codes or signs and symbols that you may be tempted to research,” said Sean Arbuthnot. 

Earlier this year, over 350,000 Call of Duty players were permanently banned by Activision for exhibiting hateful conduct towards others. And, in October, Riot Games elected to turn off all chat in League of Legends as "negative interactions outweigh the positives” in the game.