YouTube has deleted the official channel of late Nigerian televangelist TB Joshua, terminating his megachurch’s channel contract on the video streaming platform.
The Emmanuel TV channel, which was registered and operated by his Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOAN) megachurch, was taken down for violating You Tube’s hate speech policies.
This came after the celebrated televangelist, who died in 2017, was exposed for the questionable conduct during his ministry days.
The expose by British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)’s Africa Eye compiled confessions from insiders from his SCOAN megachurch, including his own daughter.
In a comment to the BBC, the Google-owned video-sharing platform said Emmanuel TV had been terminated for violating hate speech policies.
YouTube’s termination came after Emmanuel TV’s satellite channel was also dropped on 17 January by South African company MultiChoice, which runs popular satellite services DStv and GOtv.
This was a huge blow for the SCOAN church as the channel had for many years been one of the most successful Christian networks in the world, with millions of followers.
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BBC’s investigative piece caused widespread uproar from across the world.
The uproar, which also included clergy members from different churches worldwide, saw contributors and Emmanuel TV affiliated accounts online become trolled.
These accounts together with the main were reported to YouTube by openDemocracy, with the main account being suspended on January 29,2024.
Open Democracy analyzed Emmanuel TV’s online presence as part of the investigation with the BBC, finding at least 50 “abusive” videos on YouTube.
TB Joshua Influence
On YouTube, the online TV had hundreds of millions of views on the streaming app with more than half a million followers.
Also, this is the second time in three years that the channel has been suspended, following previous breaches of the platform’s community guidelines.
Emmanuel TV was launched by the late televangelist after Nigeria’s broadcast regulator banned stations from airing his supposed miracles on live terrestrial TV in 2004.
This prompted Joshua to launch the TV on satellite and then online, with his global television and social media empire becoming one of the most successful Christian networks in the world.
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His purported miracles were broadcast to millions across Africa, Europe, the Americas, and even South-East Asia.
The three-part expose which is available on YouTube as “Disciples: The Cult of TB Joshua,” features testimonies from his former workers, disciples, insiders and daughter making serious allegations against the late prophet.
Exposed
Witnesses from different countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Nigeria, and South Africa, accused Joshua of heinous acts such as manipulation and physical abuse.
Known by his full names Temitope Balogun Joshua, he founded his SCOAN church in Lagos more than three decades ago.
His meteoric rise to fame was closely tied to his self-professed divine powers and his supposed ability to heal the sick.
However, BBC exposed the theatrical healings which were filmed and documented through his online platforms.
They included videos showing the physically challenged walking and even on one occasion purporting to resurrect a dead person.
These videos were sent on VHS tapes to churches across the world, along with the testimonies of those he claimed to have cured.
His own daughter Ajoke was the part of the expose in which she gave accounts painting her late father in bad light.
Additionally, she admitted that she was a victim of the savagery her father inflicted on hundreds of people.
“My dad had fear, constant fear. He was very afraid that someone would speak up,” Ajoke told the BBC.
