If you've skimmed YouTube lately, it's more than likely you've stumbled across a video or two entitled "Why I Left BuzzFeed" and wondered "Why is this a thing?" Let us explain.

Who Are These People?

Buzzfeed has an internal division known as "BuzzFeed Motion Pictures." Based in Los Angeles, the division is responsible for all of those wacky videos you're used to seeing, like "Couples Try Kissing with Their Eyes Open," "Women Try Vagina Lipstick" and "Fried Chicken Lovers Meet Baby Chicks."

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A lot of people like these videos and a lot of people like them because they like the people in them. Many BuzzFeed fans feel a strong connection to certain personalities and follow their work religiously.

These personalities are not just actors but producers, responsible for generating ideas, shooting said ideas and then editing the footage into a final product.

Lately, a lot of these personalities have been leaving — and not without making a fuss on their way out the door.

How Did This All Start?

BuzzFeed drama surrounding producers began when popular BuzzFeed producers Brittany Ashley and Jenny Lorenzo were fired for violating their non-compete clauses, appearing in a non-BuzzFeed web series "Gente-Fied" produced by America Ferrara.

In response to internet outcry over the termination, BuzzFeed Motion Pictures president Ze Frank issued a company-wide memo affirming BuzzFeed's expectation that its creators only produce and appear in content for BuzzFeed. (And reminding everyone how lucky they are to work there.)

A number of other BuzzFeed personalities started to leave on their own volition, many citing BuzzFeed's strong non-compete clauses as a driving force behind their decisions. Thus began the trend of "Why I Left BuzzFeed" vlogs, where ex-BuzzFeed staffers explain every little thing about why the company is no longer for them.

The First(?) "Why I Left BuzzFeed"

This is the earliest "Why I Left Buzzfeed" video that we could find, dated August 2nd, 2016. It features ex-producer Kenny Moffit.

So, Why Exactly Are People Leaving?

The majority of these videos are extremely similar to Kenny's so, to save you from watching half a dozen of these videos, here are the most frequent reasons people cite for leaving:

BuzzFeed was so focused on content going viral that quality often took a backseat.

They were unable to pursue their own video projects or channels outside of work.

There was no clear "path" for them within the company or for the projects they were working on.

They were not allowed to reply to comments or engage directly with fans through formal means.

Their names were not clearly attached to the projects that they produced.

They had no "ownership" of the videos they were creating.

They were burnt out from wearing so many hats.

They just wanted to do something else.

Most ex-BuzzFeed staffers qualified that they enjoyed many aspects of the job but, at a certain point, had to walk away.

These vlogs blur together and probably aren't worth your time if you don't care about the individual personalities at play. Except for this one, which is actually really creative and funny:





So, that's basically what you need to know about all the BuzzFeed ruckus. We'll leave you here with this wonderful parody about it all.