YouTube star Jake Paul BACKTRACKS on comments he made calling COVID a ‘hoax’

Jake Paul has backpedaled on comments he made calling the deadly COVID-19 pandemic a ‘hoax’.

The YouTube star, 23, told The Daily Beast on Wednesday, that ‘COVID cases are at less than 1 percent, and I think the disease is a hoax.’ 

However just two days later, Paul claimed, ‘So this guy, this reporter, he misquoted me,’ during a subsequent interview with The Verge

Fighting words: Jake Paul has backpedaled on comments he made calling the deadly COVID-19 pandemic a ‘hoax’. Seen here at the Friday weigh in for his upcoming boxing match

The amateur boxer continued, ‘He took what I said out of context, and I told him that. I told him that the whole entire time.’ 

‘COVID is very, very real,’ claimed Paul. 

‘COVID is very real, like, it’s killed so many people. It’s killed people I know. It’s killed someone very, very close to me. So that’s what I’m saying. I don’t even know where that came from.’

However, The Daily Beast reporter Marlow Stern disputed Paul’s account and tweeted a link to the original audio of their interview.

Backpedal: Paul claimed, 'So this guy, this reporter, he misquoted me,' during a subsequent interview with The Verge

Backpedal: Paul claimed, ‘So this guy, this reporter, he misquoted me,’ during a subsequent interview with The Verge

Proof: However, The Daily Beast reporter Marlow Stern disputed Paul's account and tweeted a link to the original audio of their interview

Proof: However, The Daily Beast reporter Marlow Stern disputed Paul’s account and tweeted a link to the original audio of their interview

Paul told the outlet he believes the coronavirus pandemic is a hoax as he criticized other influencers for attending parties and breaking social distancing, while pretending they are quarantining online.

The Disney Channel alum added that it is ‘time for our nation to open up’ and that the country needs ‘to go back to normal’, as he incorrectly stated that the same number of Americans die from coronavirus as are killed by the flu.

‘This is the most detrimental thing to our society. COVID cases are at less than 1 percent, and I think the disease is a hoax,’ Paul said.

The controversial online star has previously said that he would not stop partying, despite the pandemic, after he was criticized for throwing a large, maskless party in his $6.9million Calabasas home in July. 

Controversial YouTube star Jake Paul, 23, claimed in a recent interview that he believes coronavirus is a hoax as he called for the country to be opened up again

Controversial YouTube star Jake Paul, 23, claimed in a recent interview that he believes coronavirus is a hoax as he called for the country to be opened up again

YouTube star Jake Paul threw a massive party at his Calabasas, California mansion in July despite concerns surrounding the pandemic

The party had no masks or social distancing as new coronavirus cases in California hit record highs

It came after Paul threw a massive party at his Calabasas, California mansion in July despite concerns surrounding the pandemic. Pictured above on his Instagram page

‘It’s time for us to open up. Obviously, it’s a controversial subject, but it’s time for our nation to open up and go back to normal,’ Paul told The Daily Beast.

‘There are people losing jobs, there are small businesses who are going bankrupt, there are millions of people who are unemployed right now, people are turning to alcohol and drugs to cope with everything that’s going on.’

He answered ‘I don’t have to elaborate’ when pushed further about why he believed the pandemic is a hoax and argued that there is a vaccine available for COVID-19.

No coronavirus vaccine has received FDA approval and is not yet available to the public.

Paul did state, however, that he believed those who are at risk should maintain social distancing, although questioned health advice from media sources as he claimed, ‘98 percent of news is fake’.

‘Medical professionals have also said that masks do absolutely nothing to prevent the spread of coronavirus,’ he claimed, failing to cite a recent source.

The general public were advised early in the pandemic that masks were not a requirement as health officials feared the dwindling supply would be needed by health care workers but this advise has since been updated.

‘I think if you’re at-risk, be careful. If you’re around people who are at-risk, be careful. Quarantine, do everything right, and live in a bubble, essentially. But I think if you’re young, healthy, and don’t have any health issues, I don’t think anything should be different,’ Paul added.

‘These kids are losing out on education, they’re missing their graduations, they’re missing out on sports, kids are losing out on scholarships, restaurants, everything.

‘A hundred percent of our nation is shut down due to the 1 percent who’s at risk, so that’s what I meant about how COVID doesn’t make sense to me. It doesn’t add up,’ he claimed.

Paul is set to fight former NBA star Nate Robinson  on November 28 on the undercard of Mike Tyson vs. Roy Jones Jr.  The YouTube star claims he is now concentrating on his boxing career

Paul is set to fight former NBA star Nate Robinson  on November 28 on the undercard of Mike Tyson vs. Roy Jones Jr.  The YouTube star claims he is now concentrating on his boxing career

Paul, pictured, rose to fame on the now-defunct app Vine and is known for posting reckless and adventurous videos on YouTube

The 23-year-old is now trying to break into boxing and music

Paul rose to fame on the now-defunct app Vine and is known for posting reckless and adventurous videos on YouTube. He is now trying to break into boxing and music

‘There’s something more behind it that the government’s not telling us, and to me it just sucks, because so many kids’ lives are being affected by this because we’re worried about the one percent who are gonna die. And it sucks. I don’t want those people to die, and nobody wants them to die, but it is the process of life. And s**t happens, so… I don’t know.’

Paul also slammed fellow online stars who he accused of virtue signaling when it comes to the pandemic – when they are also attending parties and failing to social distance.

I know people who are on that anti-COVID thing, saying, “Don’t go to parties!” “You a******s!” “I can’t believe you guys are throwing parties, and you’re not having any masks!” “You’re putting millions of lives in danger!” And that same celebrity is at the party the next day. They’re just doing that s**t to get people to like them,’ he alleged. 

Paul rose to fame on the now-defunct app Vine and is known for posting reckless and adventurous videos on YouTube.

He has recently taken steps into boxing, however, and on November 28, will fight former NBA star Nate Robinson on the undercard of Mike Tyson vs. Roy Jones Jr.

The former Disney Channel actor claims that he has now left the parties behind him as he prepares for the fight, weeks after a controversial bash angered the Los Angeles mayor and his home was raided by the FBI.

On July 11, his day-long party saw a large group of maskless young people gathered to drink, dance, and stand alarmingly close for photos.

In July, controversial YouTube star Jake Paul hosted a day-long party at his Calabasas home

In July, controversial YouTube star Jake Paul hosted a day-long party at his Calabasas home

A man who appears to be Paul is seen in this video where a crowd of people surround a table filled with red solo cups and drinks

Several videos of the festivities were uploaded to social media

A man who appears to be Paul is seen in this video where a crowd of people surround a table filled with red solo cups and drinks during the party hosted on July 11

At the party wild attendees were seen swinging from a construction backhoe in the backyard

At the party wild attendees were seen swinging from a construction backhoe in the backyard

Among the guests were Tana Mongeau, Bryce Hall, and Arman Izadi, all of whom partied both outside and inside in a tightly packed crowd.

Locals near the Calabasas party reported seeing ‘tons of people walking on the street unmasked and then gathering.’

One of the videos posted on social media showed a crowd of people in what appears to be the living room of the home, where revelers were seen drinking as music played in the background. People were crowded close together on a staircase.

Another video showed hordes of people around a table filled with red solo cups of drinks. Yet another video showed people playing beer pong outside.

Footage uploaded by Mongeau on TikTok showed people dangling from a construction backhoe in the backyard as the crowd cheers.

When footage made it to the news, Calabasas Mayor Alicia Weintraub told Fox 11: ‘They’re having this large party, no social distancing, no masks, it’s just a big, huge disregard for everything that everybody is trying to do to get things back to functioning.’

She also shared a plan to collaborate with law enforcement to crack down on large private events as the pandemic continues to rage on, according to Business Insider.

‘The City of Calabasas will be enforcing a zero-tolerance [policy] for large gatherings that defy local public health orders. I am committed to keeping our community safe and we are working with the Lost Hills Sheriff Station to ensure enforcement, she said.

Partiers pictured above not wearing masks and ignoring social distancing guidelines

Partiers pictured above not wearing masks and ignoring social distancing guidelines

Video from the gathering shows people gathered around the staircase and ignoring social distancing measures despite record-breaking cases in California that continue to rise

None of the attendees were wearing masks

Video from the gathering shows people gathered around the staircase and ignoring social distancing measures despite record-breaking cases in California that continue to rise

A group of people were seen playing drinking games in the backyard of Paul's mansion

A group of people were seen playing drinking games in the backyard of Paul’s mansion

A vehicle that appears to be an $127,000 Mercedes Benz G Wagon was parked inside the home, where attendees gathered on top of it to talk

A view of party attendees gathering around the luxury car above

A vehicle that appears to be an $127,000 Mercedes Benz G Wagon was parked inside the $6.9million Calabasas home, where attendees gathered on top of it to talk 

The party was thrown despite California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desperate plea for people to be wary of the virus as the state broke a then one-day new case record with 11,000 infections.

The cases have only continued to rise, hitting 20,554 new daily cases on Monday in another new record.

Yet even after the backlash, Paul remained defiant and said he would continue to party.

‘I don’t know what to think of it, to be honest. I don’t think anyone really does,’ he said. ‘No one has answers, our leadership is failing us, and everyone kind of just doesn’t know what to do.

‘But I personally am not the type of person who’s gonna sit around and not live my life,’ he added.

This is far from the first time Paul has courted controversy this year.

The FBI said no arrests were planned in the search on Paul's home. Sources say: 'We don't fully understand how misdemeanor trespassing charges turned into a federal investigation'

The FBI said no arrests were planned in the search on Paul’s home. Sources say: ‘We don’t fully understand how misdemeanor trespassing charges turned into a federal investigation’

Footage showed what appeared to be a high-powered rifle resting against the star's hot tub in the backyard that appears in many of  his recent YouTube videos

Footage showed what appeared to be a high-powered rifle resting against the star’s hot tub in the backyard that appears in many of  his recent YouTube videos

In June, he allegedly took part in looting and riots and was charged with criminal trespassing and unlawful assembly for entering the Scottsdale Fashion Square mall ibn Arizona when it was closed amid George Floyd protests.  

He was identified to police through tips and videos sent in Scottsdale.

Paul denied looting and said he wanted to ‘share our experience and bring more attention to the anger felt in every neighborhood we traveled through.’

In August, however, the FBI raided his multi-million-dollar home and seized several high-powered weapons in connection with the investigation into the incident in Arizona.

At the time, Scottsdale Police Department announced the Arizona state charges against the three men had been temporarily dismissed while the case was handed over to federal investigators.

Paul confirmed that the raid was linked to the charges in Arizona and said he would now be concentrating on his boxing and music. 

His brother Logan Paul, another YouTube star, is also no stranger to controversy. 

He came under fire in late December 2017 into early 2018 when he uploaded a vlog on his YouTube channel about a trip to Japan in which he visited a ‘suicide forest’ near Mount Fuji, a place where people were known take their own lives, and depicted a recently deceased corpse. 

The video was removed from YouTube and Paul issued a public apology.

A request for comment from YouTube on Paul’s coronavirus claims has not yet been returned.

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