MrBeast: Why has YouTuber faced criticism for blind surgery video? - BBC

MrBeast, who has 131 million subscribers and recently became the world's most popular YouTuber, initially said he did not expect so many people to view the video.

As more people watched the video, there were questions and concerns over the cost and inaccessibility of eye surgery in some parts of the world.

Andrew Hodgson, president of the National Federation of the Blind of the UK, told BBC Newsbeat: "Anything that puts a spotlight on such treatable eye conditions like cataracts and provides funding for people to undergo surgery to restore their sight should be welcomed.

A spokeswoman for Sightsavers, an international charity, added they were "encouraged to see the subject of the global eye health burden being raised to a large public audience".

Dr Jeff Levinson, the surgeon who worked on behalf of the social media star, says in the video "half of all the blindness in the world is people who need a 10 minute surgery".

In 2021, he launched a separate philanthropy-themed YouTube channel, which itself has more than 10 million subscribers, and he has a licensed charity that functions as a food bank to feed communities across the US.