YouTuber PewDiePie has called for an end to the 'Subscribe to PewDiePie' meme following the terrorist mosque attacks in Christchurch, New Zealand, which left 50 dead and injured scores more.
The gunman, Brenton Harrison Tarrant, had streamed the first attack on Facebook Live, telling viewers: "Subscribe to PewDiePie."
It was a reference to a recent movement among PewDiePie fans, which involved them carrying out stunts, often using the slogan, in an bid to promote the YouTuber and in turn help him retain his number one most-subscribed spot over T-Series.
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PewDiePie, whose real name is Felix Kjellberg, has now said it's time for people to stop sharing the meme, saying it had fallen into the hands of 'a few degenerates'.
In a video, the Swedish gamer explained: "I think it's time to end the Subscribe To PewDiePie movement, or meme.
"It's something that started off as a way to keep me as the number one most subscribed channel on YouTube, and seeing so many people come to my support, other creators as well, it's been incredibly humbling to me. It really, really meant a lot.
"At first, it started off with people doing really positive and fun things to get attention, through Subscribe to PewDiePie. But when you have 90 million people riled up about something, you're bound to get a few degenerates."
The 29-year-old then addressed the Christchuch terror attack, adding: "Out of the respect for the families and victims involved, I chose not to address it further than on Twitter, where I disavowed the actions taken that day and gave my sincerest condolences to everyone affected.
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"To have my name associated with something so unspeakably vile has affected me in more ways that I might have shown.
"I didn't want to address it right away, I didn't want to give the terrorist more attention, I didn't want to make it about me, because I don't think it has anything to do with me. To put it plainly, I didn't want hate to win.
"But it's clear to me now, the Subscribe to PewDiePie movement should have ended then."
PewDiePie, who now has 95 million YouTube subscribers, also condemned another 'Subscribe to PewDiePie' stunt, in which a WWII memorial was defaced with graffiti.
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Condemning the 'disgusting' stunt, he said he found it disappointing to have both his name and his community associated with it.
"I didn't want hateful acts to overpower all these amazing things people were doing, cool and positive things," he said.
Featured Image Credit: PewDiePie/YouTubeTopics: New Zealand, World News, Entertainment, Celebrity, News, pewdiepie, YouTube