Copyright mirror
YouTube is cashing in on Joey Barton spouting vile views – after being convicted of grossly offensive posts targeting female TV pundits. The disgraced ex-footballer, 43, superimposed the faces of former pros Eni Aluko and Lucy Ward on to a photo of serial killers Fred and Rose West. Now we can reveal the tech giant has been running adverts on Barton’s videos – including one in which he claimed Aluko “shouldn’t be talking about the men’s game”. In another, he branded England star Lauren James a “meathead” and joked about how a male physio could exploit his role in the women’s game for sexual gratification. The End Violence Against Women Coalition [EVAW] called on YouTube to de-monetise Barton’s channel and “consider whether it should even continue to host” it. Director Andrea Simon said: “We continue to see individuals like Barton, who promote harmful, derogatory and misogynistic material, earn money and profit from their platforms. We call on YouTube to uphold its terms and conditions and de-monetise Barton's channel. We believe it should consider whether it should even continue to host such content. Forthcoming guidance from Ofcom should set out clear recommendations to platform and tech companies on risk assessments and how to limit the spread of misogynistic content.” It comes after Barton was found guilty on Friday of six counts of sending grossly offensive posts aimed at Aluko, Ward and broadcaster Jeremy Vine – calling the latter a “bike nonce”. A jury at Liverpool Crown Court found Barton had "crossed the line between free speech and a crime" with six posts he made on X. He was cleared of six other counts that he sent a grossly offensive electronic communication with intent to cause distress or anxiety between January and March 2024. Following a televised FA Cup tie in January 2024 between Crystal Palace and Everton, Barton likened Ward and Aluko in a post on X to the "Fred and Rose West of football commentary". He went on to superimpose the faces of the two women on to a photo of the serial murderers. Barton also tweeted Aluko was in the "Joseph Stalin/Pol Pot category" as she had "murdered hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of football fans' ears". Jurors found Barton not guilty on the Stalin/Pol Pot comparison and the commentary analogy with the Wests, but ruled the superimposed image was grossly offensive. He was also convicted of a post in relation to Aluko in which he wrote "Only there to tick boxes. DEI is a load of shit. Affirmative action. All off the back of the BLM/George Floyd nonsense." Later the same day of the former Bristol Rovers manager’s conviction, we saw ads running on videos on his “Common Sense with Joey Barton” YouTube channel, which has over 55,000 subscribers. We found a video advert on a clip from Barton in which he said Aluko had “been a really good women’s footballer” but argued she “shouldn’t be talking about the men’s game”. In the video from January last year, he added: “She’s had ample opportunity and she’s not got better.” It came after the ex-England international said she was left fearing for her safety following Barton’s social media posts. In another video three months ago, Barton ridiculed women’s football in a “Watchalong” highlights of a Lionesses’ Euros match over the summer. We saw adverts on the 16-minute clip when we watched it on Friday. In the video, Barton calls Lauren James England’s best player but then says “she’s a bit of a meathead” Barton’s comment came after his co-host said the Chelsea player did not look like a footballer. Later in the clip, he ranted: “Why have women got holes cut in their socks? There’s no way your calves are big enough.” He added: “It is just fashion, it is literally just fashion. Why are women cutting holes in the back of their socks?” In another section of the video, Barton joked about how a male physio could exploit his role in the women’s game for sexual gratification. In March, Barton – whose playing career included spells at Man City, Newcastle and QPR – was found guilty of kicking his wife in the head and handed a 12-week suspended prison sentence. YouTube’s “Advertiser-friendly content guidelines” sets out what is not suitable including “Content that focuses on shaming or insulting an individual or group”. Meanwhile, its community standards forbids “Content that contains prolonged insults or slurs based on someone's intrinsic attributes”. YouTube, which makes money from advertising, allows “creators” to earn cash from videos. It is not clear exactly how much money YouTube or Barton is making from his channel but a recent video about Gary Neville attracted 287,000 views. When we contacted Barton’s “Common Sense Team” asking how much the ex-footballer had made from advertising on his YouTube channel, a response said: “It is absolutely none of your business.” YouTube did not remove Barton's videos flagged by the Mirror after we contacted owner Google for comment.
