That is health influencer Joey Swoll. He’s the self-proclaimed “CEO of Health club Postivity,” with thousands and thousands of followers on TikTok, X, Instagram, and YouTube.
He describes himself as “any person who would not like bullies within the health club or on social media. That tries to show individuals to deal with others the best way you wish to be handled and hopefully makes the world just a little higher of a spot.”
On July 25, Joey posted a now-deleted tribute to wrestling legend Hulk Hogan, 71, who died on July 24, 2025. Joey shared an previous video of himself dressed because the wrestler, figuring out within the health club with the caption “RIP to a legend and one among my inspirations to begin figuring out.”
Then, Joey acquired backlash for supporting Hogan, a wrestler whose WWE contract was terminated in 2015 over his use of racial slurs. In 2016, a Florida jury awarded Hogan $115 million towards Gawker Media, which posted a intercourse tape of him. The case led to the invention that he used racial slurs in 2007 to explain his daughter, Brooke Hogan’s ex-boyfriend.
Based on the transcript, Hogan even stated, “I’m racist, to some extent, f—ing n—s.”
Regardless of Hogan’s contributions to wrestling leisure, this controversy, amongst others, concerning his private life and his relationship with the wrestling group, tainted his legacy. And sadly for the health influencer, Joey discovered the exhausting manner about what it means to assist Hulk Hogan in 2025.
In response to the backlash he acquired for the tribute, Joey responded in a dwell stream, defending his assist of Hogan. “I can publish Hulk Hogan if I wish to. Simply because any person makes a mistake of their life, doesn’t suggest that they have not performed good issues,” he stated. “I do not know what he did. He stated one thing 20 years in the past and apologized for it.
“If you are going to assault me, you higher go after coloured athletes, who’re black and minority who posted him as properly. Okay. The person was good to me, and he made a mistake. I am not God. Individuals make errors in life. You probably have an issue with that, have a look at your self.”
When Joey used the time period “coloured athletes,” it went viral, and all the things actually hit the fan. The influencer discovered himself in the course of much more backlash, which led to a follow-up apology.
On July 28, he shared an apology video on social media. “As an alternative of listening and understanding like I ought to have, I grew to become defensive and stated that I used to be posting to rejoice the wrestling icon, the person who so many people seemed as much as as children. I did not know the extent of all of the horrible issues that he had performed,” Joey stated.
After apologizing for the Hulk Hogan video and his TikTok Reside, he apologized utilizing the fallacious phrases to deal with individuals of coloration. “I used the phrase coloured as an alternative of claiming individual of coloration, which is a really outdated and really offensive time period,” he added. “A number of moments later, any person educated me and informed me that it wasn’t okay to make use of that. I instantly apologized.”
Because the backlash and criticism continued, Joey posted one other sequence of explanations on social media that, for my part, solely made the matter worse. On July 29, he shared an X publish explaining he was “performed” with forwards and backwards. “All the nice I’ve performed, all of the individuals I’ve helped, all for nothing. I really hope all of the individuals I’ve impressed do nice issues of their life and pay it ahead to assist others and stick with it my message. However regardless of how a lot good you do, individuals simply await a motive to hate you and tear you down. You both die a hero, or dwell lengthy sufficient to be the villain. Thanks to your assist. I’m performed,” he wrote.
Following his apology, some followers have been upset with Joey, claiming he did not do something fallacious, and known as him out for apologizing:
In response to these criticisms, Joey posted a follow-up X publish defending his resolution to “take a break” from social media. “Lots of people upset with me calling me weak and a quitter or worse… So yea, possibly I’m performed with social media or have to take a break and get my head proper. However I’ll say there so many unimaginable individuals being supportive and telling me how a lot I’ve helped them, to be stronger, and hold preventing. Thanks to everybody even these giving me a kick within the ass telling me to cease being weak and a quitter. You could hear it as soon as in awhile. I simply have to breathe.”
There have been lots of combined reactions to Joey’s apologies, which, for my part, spotlight the worst elements of the web echo chambers.
One individual wrote, “You have been reactive and on prime of your extremely tone-deaf hulk hogan publish, doubled down and referred to black individuals as ‘coloured’ on a dwell stream. You aren’t a sufferer, and this isn’t accountability, which is ironic given you constructed your platform demanding it from others.”
“Respectfully, you used language like ‘colored’, ‘the blacks’ & then excused racism as ‘only a mistake 20 years.’ I discover it exhausting to consider that you just had no concept that Hulk Hogan (who was your idol) had stated racist issues. Go study out of your errors, do not run away. Be higher,” one other individual wrote.
However for each one who tried to carry Joey accountable for his errors, three extra doubled down on why he or Hulk Hogan did nothing fallacious.
“As mushy as Charmin. That is some woe as me bullshit. You bought known as out such as you name out all the losers in your movies and now you are appearing like a whiny little teenager. Sack up, Swoll. Ya have to do higher,” one fan wrote.
One other fan wrote, “You trashed your idol, somebody who was necessary to an enormous portion of this nation proper after he died. Why? Some individuals won’t ever forgive you complained. Do not act like we are the dangerous guys. You probably did this.”
After studying by all these explanations, apologies, and backlash, I wish to know what you consider the scenario. Pontificate within the feedback.