Popular gossip site Qc Scoop, which was at the center of a controversy over the spread of private and controversial information about an influencer, lost numerous business partners on Tuesday, sparking outrage across the entertainment industry. After being dropped by her agency, the platform that bills itself as “Your Quebec Gossip Girl” has now also lost its service provider, La Presse has learned.
Posted at 1:14 p.m
Result: The site, at least in its current form, should no longer be accessible during the day.
Last Monday, Qc Scoop was heavily criticized after a rumor spread on its website and social networks, supported by a photo, that the artist and influencer Rafaëlle Roy was in hospital “under police surveillance”.
“She couldn’t go to the bathroom without the police following her,” an anonymous source stated in the now-deleted article, suggesting that the former The Voice contestant was drunk and under police control. It should be noted that at the end of September the website reported extensively on allegations of impaired driving against Rafaëlle Roy.
“I went to the hospital accompanied by police officers because I asked for help because I had suffered in silence for too long,” the influencer later corrected on Instagram, stating that she was “completely empty.”
After removing the controversial publication, Qc Scoop apologized to Rafaëlle Roy and those around her on social networks. “The line between what deserves to be put online and what doesn’t is sometimes very thin, but this time it was too much,” the platform admitted. “We are not perfect and this is the proof. »
IMAGE FROM A SCREENSHOT, THE PRESS
IMAGE FROM A SCREENSHOT, THE PRESS
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Too little, too late: Some saw the release of Qc Scoop as lacking consideration and contempt for private life. “How many destroyed lives, how many broken families it will take,” responded presenter Véronique Cloutier on social networks.
During Monday, singer-songwriter Guillaume Fuso launched the online petition “For QCSCOOP to close permanently”; At the time of publication, it collected almost 10,000 signatures. “QCSCOOP has caused enough damage in people’s lives, in which it interferes without scruples,” writes the author of the letter, who shared his life with Rafaëlle Roy.
“We must collectively rise above this culture of emptiness, cancellation and hatred that this misleading site propagates.” Qc Scoop gained popularity in 2022 after it broke news about influencers being killed during a trip to Tulum during COVID -19 pandemic wreaked havoc.
The gossip site’s founder, Simon Waddell, rakes in thousands of dollars in advertising revenue every week through his platforms.
Too much controversy
The company H&L Média, which hosted and monetized Qc Scoop, no longer wants to be associated with the gossip site founded in 2022 by Simon Waddell. It is not the first time that the sports and television news channel Entertainment – which includes, among others, Marqueur.com, Noovelles, L’Informateur, ToutQc and even Fanadiens – is at odds with Qc Scoop, explains Marc Ouimet, one of the owners from H&L Médias, on the phone. This time there is too much controversy. “We manage the content of 99% of our websites,” he explains. Qc Scoop, it was the exception and it still falls to us. »
A press release from the supplier was prepared under the supervision of the lawyers.
Earlier in the day, the agency Haute Influence also announced in a press release that it had severed its ties with the website Qc Scoop. The company “has always advocated high ethical standards in its partnerships and collaborations. We strongly believe in the importance of working with individuals and organizations that share our principles and vision. Unfortunately, recent developments do not fit this philosophy. »
Neither Simon Waddell nor Qc Scoop had responded to our interview requests at the time of publication.