Twitch has banned a lot of people over the years. Moderation isn't easy, but sometimes bans stir controversy, especially those handed out by Twitch. Not everyone is fond of the ways that the platform hands out punishments, especially when it has to do with the platforms DMCA and music based bans.
At the end of the day, nobody is immune to the ban hammer, and sometimes really big names get removed from the platform—sometimes temporarily, sometimes permanents. With this in mind, here are some of the biggest bans that Twitch has handed out in recent memory.
CodeMiko
One of the most popular trends in streaming right now is V-streaming, or virtual streamer. These streamers create digital avatars for themselves instead of showing their face on camera. CodeMiko is a rising star in this subgenre of the industry, setting herself apart by being highly interactive. Fans have some ability to influence CodeMiko's appearance mid-stream. Just a few days ago, though, CodeMiko was handed a ban, apparently for accidentally leaking someone's personal details on stream. CodeMiko says she'll be back on February 5th, so hopefully she can avoid a situation like this from here on out.
xQc
xQc, otherwise known as xQcOW, boasts an impressive 7.5 million followers on Twitch. Formerly a professional Overwatch player, xQc has a long history of controversy, and not long ago, Twitch issued a temporary ban to xQc when it learned that he had cheated in a Twitch Rivals tournament by stream sniping the other competitors. xQc issued an apology afterwards, and has since admitted that he thinks his ban was a good thing, since it gave him time to think about his actions. xQc is a huge influence on Twitch, and it shows that size doesn't make anyone immune to punishment. This creator has seen a few Twitch bans before, so it'll be interesting to see how he operates going forward.
Donald Trump
It's not every day that someone outside the video game industry makes waves on Twitch. However, the former United States president Donald Trump was banned from Twitch earlier this year. It issued this ban after the riot at the US Capitol in early January, as Twitch was only one of many platforms that took this action against recent events. Although Twitch certainly wasn't Trump's favored means of communication, it was still a significant outlet for his political messages that was cut off.
ZeRo
In 2020, the Super Smash Bros community was rocked by accusations of sexual harassment levied at major players. One of those players was ZeRo. Once considered one of Super Smash Bros Brawl's best players, ZeRo's career online has ended. Shortly after his accusations came to light, ZeRo confessed to his misdeeds on Twitter. He hasn't reemerged since, leaving his YouTube channel lying dormant. It doesn't seem likely that anyone will see or hear anything from ZeRo in the near future, considering how many groups besides Twitch have severed ties from him.
Cryaotic
ZeRo's wasn't the only story of sexual misconduct in 2020. In June of last year, YouTuber and Twitch streamer Cryaotic made a video admitting to having romantic relationships with minors. While he seemed to intend for his confession to be an apology, viewers were outraged, and the backlash eventually resulted in his permanent ban from Twitch. Cryaotic's public backpedaling clearly didn't convince Twitch to show him any lenience.
Dr Disrespect
Prominent Twitch bans can't be discussed without bringing up Dr Disrespect's ban. This major shooter streamer had millions of followers before he was removed from the platform suddenly and unexpectedly. What sets Dr Disrespect apart is that the reasons for his ban are still a mystery. For a while, it seemed both Doc and his fans didn't know why he was removed from Twitch. For a while it sounded like Dr Disrespect was thinking about pressing charges against Twitch, but so far, no case has publicly materialized. He remains one of the biggest streamers to be banned permanently from Twitch.
Voyboy
One more major streamer that's faced a ban in 2020 was Voyboy, a former acclaimed League of Legends professional. Voyboy has more than a million followers and amasses thousands of viewers per stream, but last November he was kicked from Twitch mid-stream. The reason wasn't clear at first, but apparently it was because of music that was playing in his stream. Voyboy is only one of many streamers to have trouble with Twitch's labyrinthine music policies, but thankfully his story ends happily. Voyboy was returned to the platform shortly afterwards. Although Twitch has handed out some important and worthy bans over the years, Voyboy's story shows it still has some perfecting to do.