Allow me to propose an explanation. This is nothing new. Companies have always cared about their self-image and reputation. It's called 'running a legitimate business'. YouTube started giving people a voice back in 2006 and that voice has gotten louder and louder. YouTube is currently a colossus in the web-sphere. All eyes are on YouTube, and by extension Google, and by extension their advertisers. Brands that pay money to have their logo/name/brand next to content uploaded to YouTube. Today YouTube has a lot of "stars". Call it PewDiePie or James or Game Grumps or PhillipDeFranco or whatever. So advertisers now are aware that their brands are being shown next to all kinds of content and that they (the advertisers) have no control over. Some things are harmless like James' thumbnails but others are not so harmless. Take PewDiePie as an example. His Hitler shenanigans could be seen as harmless by almost everyone even remotely into his sense of humor, but advertisers don't care. They shouldn't have to care. It's their business and their reputation that is being shown next to a dude dressed in an SS military police uniform. They don't care about context or intent. They care about image and reputation. You can call this the fall of YouTube or something like that but the truth is that being 'advertiser friendly' is just as profitable as being nsfw and having a strong fan-base behind you. The problem that James is facing is the fact that he hasn't diversified enough. Cowchop was a step in the right direction but it wasn't done correctly, in my opinion. Diversify as in look for other sources of income. Sources of income such as Patreon, Twitch, events, more merch, better merch, etc. Cowchop and the LP family are (once again) a good step but not good enough. I think James is currently stuck in a character he can't get out of. He's an entertainer. He's expected to be outrageous and funny. People want him to continue setting things on fire, buying dildos, mixing food together, pranking, yelling, etc. This was clear since the moment breaking a keyboards became a thing. If he wanted (or was able to) lower his outrageousness, be a little bit less insane for the camera, and actually take a moment to approach things seriously he could easily land a sponsorship deal with the hundreds of companies out there that don't care if his (or Cowchop's) videos have "INTENSE DILDO SALAD" in the title of the video with a thumbnail of Aleks and Joe with mayo all over their faces and lettuce leaves + dildos in the background. I don't claim to have all the answers. I obviously don't. I just know a thing or two about marketing and advertising. I understand why James wants to continue doing what he does. He's always said he enjoys being an entertainer. Dressing up, being loud, being funny, and making people laugh. He clearly cares about his income right now. Otherwise this video wouldn't exist. There's absolutely nothing wrong with caring about not getting money from (what used to be) your biggest source of money. I just think there's a way out and James is either not seeing it or flat-out ignoring it. I hope he finds a way to fix this problem and that he doesn't suffer from not being able to change with the times.