James Somerton

James Somerton was a YouTube creator who produced essay-style videos analyzing LGBTQ+ representation in film, television, and literature. He built a following among viewers interested in queer media criticism and cultural commentary. In December 2023, YouTuber hbomberguy (Harry Brewis) published a nearly four-hour video documenting extensive plagiarism across Somerton's catalog, which prompted widespread coverage and led to Somerton deleting his channel.

The investigation documented that Somerton had copied passages from dozens of authors, journalists, and academics without attribution, presenting their writing and analysis as his own. A number of the sources he drew from were LGBTQ+ writers and scholars working in the areas Somerton covered. The scale of the copying was described by commentators as systematic across multiple years of content. Somerton had not publicly disclosed his reliance on these sources.

Following the publication of hbomberguy's video, Somerton posted a message on social media that many observers characterized as a suicide note, and he deleted his YouTube channel. He subsequently returned with a public video apology acknowledging the plagiarism. The initial post-exposure message drew criticism from viewers who described it as an attempt to generate sympathy in the immediate aftermath of the accusations. Somerton did not address in detail the specific extent of the borrowing documented in hbomberguy's video.

The Somerton case attracted significant discussion about attribution norms on YouTube, where creators regularly draw on published research and journalism for essay-style content. Critics argued Somerton's conduct went well beyond normal reliance on sources and represented sustained misappropriation of others' intellectual work. Somerton expressed regret for his conduct and acknowledged the harm caused to the writers whose work he had used without credit.