Kick accuses French authorities of politicising streamer’s death

The streaming platform Kick has accused French authorities of politicising the death of a content creator who passed away during a livestream.

Raphaël Graven, also known as Jean Pormanove, was found dead in a residence near the city of Nice last week.

Prosecutors have opened an investigation into the Australian video platform, and French government minister Clara Chappaz said the state would take Kick to court to “stop the damage caused by the content involved in this tragedy”.

“This is not about creator safety, customer safety, or the well-being of the industry, but rather a politicised narrative that takes advantage of a tragic personal loss,” Kick told BBC News.

And the streaming platform said it was “disappointed” the media were told about the minister’s actions before it was.

The BBC has reached out to the French government for a response.

Mr Graven was known for videos in which he appeared to endure apparent violence and humiliation.

The Paris prosecutor said this week its investigation would look into whether Kick knowingly broadcast “videos of deliberate attacks on personal integrity”.

Kick has now given more information, from its perspective, about the death of Mr Graven.

It said the creator died during a “typical” livestream and, according to prior statements made by Mr Graven and the other participants, their content was “pre-planned and scripted”.

Kick said Mr Graven passed away in bed during the stream, and it said it has removed content showing his death.

Kick also states it suspended all related accounts pending investigation, and said it cooperated fully with all authorities, including law enforcement, the regulatory body Arcom and the office of Chappaz.

“We are surprised by the messages conveyed by politicians,” Kick said.

“We never tried and will not try to escape or deny our regulatory obligations.

“We hope that it will be possible to work serenely with French authorities and correct the false narratives that are circulated.”

Mr Graven was found dead on 18 August.

Local media reported the 46-year-old had been subject to bouts of violence and sleep deprivation during streams.

In a post on X, Chappaz described his death as an “absolute horror” and said he had been humiliated and mistreated on the platform for months.

A post-mortem examination revealed Mr Graven’s death was not the result of trauma or the actions of a third party.

Local police have seized videos and interviewed a number of people they say were present when he died.

They also disclosed Mr Graven had previously been spoken to by detectives and had “firmly denied” being a victim of violence, saying the acts he was involved in were staged to “create a buzz” and make money.

Kick is a platform similar to Twitch, and users can broadcast content and interact with other users in real time.

“We are deeply saddened by the loss of Jean Pormanove and extend our condolences to his family, friends and community,” said Kick in a previous statement.