Former BlazeTV personality Sydney Watson addressed viewers following Friday’s revelation of her lawsuit against the media outlet revealing she had experienced depression over the last year.
Watson introduced the video announcing a new weekly live stream with the Quartering‘s Jeremy Hambly called Community Notes before saying she had wanted to “step back” from the political world along with social media altogether for the last year.
The former personality also revealed she had felt depressed in the last year, presumably regarding her allegations against her former employer and former You Are Here cohost Elijah Schaffer, though Watson did not directly address the lawsuit.
“Ever since I started doing this I have loved making content,” she said she loved researching and writing out ideas for content along with reading feedback from viewers.
“Somewhere along the way I just stopped enjoying it,” Watson said, adding that 2022 was “not [her] year … both professionally and personally.”
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“Anger is really destructive when it is the primary feeling that you feel,” she said.
“You don’t have to be okay with some of the things that went on in 2022, but you have to move on from them, and you have to stop being so angry all the time because it’s not helping you,” Watson said of herself, noting Hambly had supported her.
She said she did not want to be “associated or close to some people and things” existing in the “industry and political world.”
“But I don’t think the answer to that is pack up shop and be done … what does that solve?” Watson said. “It just takes me out of the equation, takes any ideas I might have out of the equation, and it just makes everything a lot smaller.”
“I’m not quitting the internet,” Watson announced. “Going forward I am going to start branching out,” noting her new video game channel, Sydney Mashes Buttons.
In a Saturday tweet, the former BlazeTV personality thanked her supporters for reaching out though noted she was “unable to comment further.”
“I really appreciate you all.”
Thank you for the kind messages and support. I'm unable to comment further. But, I really appreciate you all.
— Dr. Sydney Watson (@SydneyLWatson) February 11, 2023
Lawyer and rapper Patriot J revealed Watson was suing the media outlet in a Friday tweet thread.
Last Wednesday, Watson filed a four count lawsuit against BlazeTV alleging the outlet created and tolerated a “hostile work environment” that allowed sexual harassment, retaliation, and further discriminated against her on the basis of her sex and religion. Author and lawyer Kurt Schlichter is representing Watson.
Schaffer and Watson co-hosted You Are Here on BlazeTV between September 2021 and April 2022.
BlazeTV “actively terminated” her employment in July 2022 in response to her complaints about Schaffer, according to Dixon.
In September 2022, BlazeTV announced Schaffer, who also hosted the solo podcast Slightly Offens*ve, had been dropped from the outlet’s roster, though did not reveal their reason for letting him go.
Several other BlazeTV personalities have made similar allegations of Schaffer though the former Slightly Offens*ve host has declined to comment due to a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) with the outlet.
Watson’s lawsuit is seeking damages for “mental anguish, pain and suffering, lost wages and benefits (both back pay and front pay),” along with punitive damages “in the highest amount under the law” and an award of attorney’s fees from the outlet.
