The Philip DeFranco Show - The Roblox Predator Situation is Crazy

Episode Date: August 12, 2025

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The Roblox Predator Problem is crazy in getting worse with new bans, sparking backlash. The truth about the man who Trump just picked to collect data on jobs and inflation for the entire country is wild. And leaked documents just exposed a Pentagon plan to create a military reaction force to quash protests across the country. We're talking about all of that, and even more, on today's brand new, Philip DeFranco show you daily dive into the news you need to know, but also, today you might get tired to getting filled in because I'm giving you a double dose. Not only are you getting this show, but I just had a conversation with Dr. Mike for my my In Good Faith podcast that you can watch or listen to right now.

Ideally, after Today's show, I don't want you running away yet. It's the top link in the description. It's very interesting. I think you're going to love it. But that said, we have a lot to talk about right now, starting with this. The biggest gaming platform out there, Roblox, is protecting pedophiles. That is what you're seeing some saying after the platform banned the YouTuber Schlep, due to his catch-a-preditor-style content that he was running in the game.

And according to Schlep, the company sent him a cease and desist a few days ago and claimed he had violated their terms and services for engaging in simulated child endangerment conversations, sharing or soliciting personally identifiable information and directing users to move conversations off platform. And around the same time, you had the company releasing new terms of service that would ban vigilante groups from the platform and saying that those involved could have their accounts terminated. And in a follow-up video, you had Schlepp saying, Within the last year, me and my team had gotten six predators arrested within the Roblox community. Almost all of them have admitted to doing this before to other Roblox users. Every account that I've owned on Roblox since I was eight years old has been terminated.

accounts that we were actively talking to predators on have now been banned off of Roblox. What Roblox did could potentially stop some predators from facing real-life consequences. He then goes on to say that he's also barred from accessing Roblox from now on, and you've Schlapp then also tearing into the bullet points in the cease and assist letter. Roblox is claiming that I'm engaging in simulated child endangerment conversations. What? So one of the fundamental bases of predator catching is that you cannot talk sexually to predator. Predators are supposed to be the ones talking sexually to you.

If you talk sexually to predators like straight off the get-go, that's entrapment. That is literally what entrapment is. We almost always play a naive kid who doesn't know anything about this stuff, so they teach us about this stuff. If you watch these videos, you know how the chats are going, and they're not even on Roblox. Most of the chat logs are on Discord. You also have Schleb saying he does recognize, yes,

he does try to get people off at the Roblox platform to have the conversations on Discord, but you had a mocking the idea that it's worth a cease and desist letter. And all of this is one big gripe he has is that Roblox claims that he should have have reported these users directly to them, except their systems for doing that. They seem to be pretty anemic and not clear. So much so that someone made credible threats to attack the Las Vegas sphere and users had to go directly to the FBI. And then the real kicker for Schlep is that the would-be attacker still hasn't been banned. So then with all of that, you have the entire situation now just blowing up into a real PR nightmare for Roblox. People in the comments is Schlep's

video openly saying that Roblox is protecting predators and you've had major figures in the space coming out to defend Schleps, such as Creekcraft with his 13 million subscribers. And he made a video yesterday covering the situation, which was also kind of a big deal for him because he's partnered with Roblox and will likely get into some trouble for saying things. Notably, in this video, you know, he covers a number of things. He talks about how the move to ban vigilante groups in general does

make sense, as many of these to catch a predator type people, do illegal things, like literally beat people to catch alleged predators. Then you had him going on to say... The issue, however, is SLEP was not like that. SLEP was one of the only people I know to actually

do it the correct way. Schlep was doing it the right way. He worked with law enforcement. He worked with news agencies. He worked with the proper channels to get these people arrested. He wasn't the type to go into Walmart, start punching people, beating people up, and then call the cops after. You know what I mean?

I also know that he would regularly report people to the proper law enforcement, to the police. Like, he actually did his due diligence. And he would Creekcraft adding that he thinks, Roblox did this solely because Schlep was the biggest name doing it, regardless of whether he was doing it the right way or not. With him then going on to say, this guy is hurting Roblox's reputation. Why is he hurting Roblox's reputation? Because he's kind of shining a light on a really big issue in the Roblox space. And that's bad actors in the Roblox space. And that makes Roblox look bad. And Roblox looking bad hurts their public reception. It hurts their stock. It hurts their bottom line. It hurts their

financials. And so what do they do? They get rid of them. And it's also not where his criticism ended because he also talked about Roblox having a plethora of games that are clearly inappropriate and nothing's done to take them down. Right. And all of this is he definitely wasn't alone. You had others coming to Schlepp's defense. Where you had people like Jidion, for example, who makes videos with Schleps saying, the reason why they're doing this is because right now Roblox PR is at an all-time low, where pretty much people even think that the CEO is on the Epstein list, allegedly, allegedly. And I mean, it's just absolutely disgusting. And I mean, it's just absolutely disgusting what they're doing here. Instead of maybe opening a line up for SLEP

to, I don't know, report these guys easier and stuff, because I'll let you guys know this. Every time we get the arrest on the dude, he reports them right away, right? He reports them right away. Roblox doesn't do anything. Whenever the dudes bail out and stuff, he'll literally see them go back online doing whatever they do playing games and stuff. And he's already reported them and he'll tweet at them, yo, Roblox. I literally sent you guys the guys, arrest information, everything, you guys still haven't banned them. The only time they ban the person is whenever the video drops. So we're doing it in the process that you guys want reporting it, but you guys don't ban them until the video drops. And then even outside of the community,

you had people like Asman Golds and Moise Critical all pretty much saying the same thing. Schlapp was putting a spotlight on a very real problem in Roblox, and the company decided to just silence him. Now, for its part, the company has tried to push back on some of the claims, its initial tweet that banned vigilante groups. Right, it specifically outlined that it does work with law enforcement to try and protect players and in the posts they wrote. We maintain direct communication channels with organizations, such as the FBI and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children for immediate escalation of serious threats that we identify.

And adding, we proactively report potentially harmful content to NCMEC, which is the designated reporting entity for the public and electronic service providers regarding instances of suspected child sexual exploitation. In 2024, we submitted 24,522 reports to NCMEC, which is the designated However, since all the videos have come out bashing the company, it's been pretty silent about the situation until today when it finally gave a statement to PC mag with a rep saying It's important to speak with the right sources to really understand how vigilante individuals and groups operate EG violating policies around sharing personally identifiable information Engaging in sexual conversations lying about their ages, etc all while having a profit motive to evade detection instead of providing companies like ours with all the information to take the necessary action

So they never really addressed the allegations that they ignore reports and if anything they make it seem like Schlepp is engaging in activity to entrap people. So with all that, you had Schlep responding, we send you everything, we create you YouTube video showcasing the chat logs, we send you the Google drives, we give to the cops. You never made a line with me, and in multiple instances, you only ban arrested predators

after I release a massive video on it. And adding, the whole Roblox community sees how flawed this argument is. It's because everyone has seen anecdotally that reports very rarely work. If your stance on safety is really true, why are their bathroom shower games for children? And you know, even PC MAG recognized that there were entire spaces within the game that were pretty open to engaging with minors.

And also, say, what's very wild with this is that despite all of the backlash we've seen online and from the community, it doesn't seem that the market has reacted along with it. The stock hasn't been hit too hard. And over the past five days, it's actually up 2%. Which granted, is a slower rate of growth than the company has seen all year, but it's still up. And even over the last day where this is really blown up, it's barely dented the stock price. And of course, as we've seen over the years when we cover stories like this, that matters because one of the only things that actually affects companies, is money. So while it remains to be seen what will actually happen here regarding Schlep and the

situation as a whole, while it seems like the writings on the wall, who knows? In the meantime, I'd say I'd pass the question off to you. What are your thoughts here? What are your reactions and where do you think it goes from here? And then I've got more news for you in just a minute but first. Do you ever wonder, you know, what's missing from your freezer? Because I found out it's today's delicious sponsor, Wild grain. And let me say, I love wild grain. They're artisanal bake from frozen sourdough, their pastries, a fresh pasta. It's our move to bring back comfort in our line. This is the first. first-ever subscription box that lets you bake from frozen to in your mouth in 25 minutes or less.

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croissants forever and small pro tip don't miss out because their seasonal items they sell out fast and then next up in the news the united states could soon have a national guard unit ready to deploy anywhere in the country within one hour to respond to protests with the report saying that the white house is reviewing a plan. And that, according to internal Pentagon documents that were reviewed by the Washington Post, which reportedly said that this so-called domestic civil disturbance-quick reaction force could be sent to American cities facing protests in as little as an hour. And more specifically, the proposal calls for 600 troops to be stationed between military bases in Alabama and Arizona. Though those troops would not just come from those two states, but rather Army and Air Force

National Guard units in over a dozen states. And according to the Pentagon's own projections, if this plan were adopted, it could end up costing hundreds of millions of U.S. taxpayer dollars to keep military aircraft and air crews ready around the clock. Though reportedly transporting troops via commercial airlines is being considered and would be far less expensive. And then as far as the when, according to the documents of the 2027 fiscal year as the early as this program could be created and funded through the Pentagon's traditional budgetary process. Though I say that as it's unclear whether it could get started sooner by way of some other

funding source. But either way, to be clear, like what we're talking about is not normal. Right, it's true that most National Guard commands have fast response teams to respond to emergencies, including civil unrest in their home states. And notably, the National Guard actually tested out a version of this plan in 2020, with them readying 600 troops in Arizona and Alabama in case of possible election-related political violence. Fears, it seemed warranted when Trump supporters attacked the Capitol on January 6th.

But that said, on the other hand, there appears to be no clear reason for this. For example, an associate professor at the U.S. Naval War College claiming that it's really strange because essentially nothing is happening and going on to say, crime is going down. We don't have major protests or civil disturbances. There is no significant resistance from states to federal immigration policies. There is very little evidence anything big is likely to happen soon. And on top of that, you have her saying that the proposal risks diverting National Guard resources

that may be needed to respond in natural disasters or other emergencies. And with all that said, again, right now, this is just a plan that is being considered. And in fact, it's not even clear yet whether the proposal's been shared yet with Defense Secretary Pete Hegset. But it's also pretty clear that this is exactly the type of plan that Hegset and Trump might be interested in. I mean, they literally just authorized the deployment of 800 National Guard troops to D.C., and they also sent in hundreds of federal agents and they took control of the police department. And all of that based off at the very best, cherry-picked, and at the very worst, wrong, incorrect data. And actually, connected to that, you have people like one former professor in the U.S. Army War College telling the Wall Street Journal,

the most benign interpretation is that this is an attempt to gain a public relations victory by claiming credit for the already historically low crime rates in D.C. But then adding, the worst-case interpretation is that it is a test run for more legally dubious uses of military forces in other American cities. Although there, you could ask, you know, when does it stop being a test run and start being the real thing? I mean, Trump, he already dispatched thousands of troops to the southern border, expanding the military's role there late last month. And then, of course, he sent thousands of National Guard as well as active duty Marines to L.A. back in June in response to protests. And that was despite the objections of California Governor Gavin Newsom, which actually led to Newsom suing the Trump administration. And coincidentally, that trial, it's happening now. It kicked off yesterday with a judge there saying.

The factual question, which the court must address is whether the military was used to enforce domestic law. And if so, whether there continues to be a threat that will be done again. With some of the most notable testimony so far coming from Major General Scott Sherman who commanded guard troops in L.A. Right, notably, he said he never heard the term rebellion used to describe the situation there, even though Trump's executive order calling the guard argued that the protest constituted a form of rebellion. He also said that a DHS official questioned his loyalty to his country for objecting to the request for military assistance with an immigration enforcement operation at MacArthur Park.

And that was the operation involving horsebounded officers, military vehicles, and even a helicopter, and what was seen as more of a show of force and a real immigration enforcement effort. But then also at that, you had lawyers for, California, focusing on operations in which National Guard troops joined federal agents to raid marijuana farms more than 100 miles away. And so, you know, we're going to have to see how that trial goes, especially because a ruling against Trump there, it could reinforce the limits on his ability to deploy the military in the country. But for now, as we wait to see how that plays out, I got to pass the question off to you. What are your thoughts and reactions to what we're seeing here?

But then, next up in the news, I want you to meet the man who Donald Trump just picked to collect data on jobs and inflation for the entire country. So inflation is slowed dramatically. In fact, what's really amazing is the rate of pricing. increases that we're seeing in Trump's second term is actually lower than the long run average that we saw from 2009 through 2020, let alone the rates that we saw under Biden. His name is E.J. Anthony, and he is a very big fan of Donald Trump. He was an author on Projects 2025. Now he's the chief economist at the Right Wing Heritage Foundation. And as of yesterday evening, he's the next nominee ahead the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Which should be an odd

role for someone like him because BLS commissioners are usually nonpartisan technocrats. And he is a fierce ideologue. But of course, just under two weeks ago, Trump fired the previous commissioner Erica McInturfer after she released job data that he really didn't like. Or because every month the BLS announces how many jobs were created or lost the previous month, and as later arriving more accurate data comes in, it also revises past estimates. And so this time McIntyrever revised the May and June numbers down by 258,000 jobs. Meaning that in reality May only added 19,000 jobs. June added just 14,000 in July, added 73,000 according to the month's initial estimate. So that last number could technically change, but all of which was just horrendous.

It was way worse than what was expected. And see what Trump, calling them rigged, firing her, and eventually settling on Antony, which also may or may not have something to do with Steve Bannon singing his praises for the past week. You know, Antony, he's an obvious pick for Trump, because not only is he a big critic of the BLS. He has also harshly criticized the economy under Biden and championed it under Trump. Them ironically, pointing to downward job data revisions under Biden, is evidence that the economy was a House of Cards back then. It's making us question, And is the economy even really expanding at this point? Are we in a recession?

Are we near or entering a recession? There's only one time when we had a revision that was this big. And it was in the global financial crisis. Recently, you have him spinning the poor job growth under Trump as a sign that employment is shifting away from the unproductive public sector to the productive private sector, saying that, quote, many so-called blockbuster jobs reports under Biden were just government hiring sprees at taxpayer expense, of course. But I'm adding that the jobs that are being created now are going to native-born Americans,

unlike under Biden. With him then dismissing what he called the so-called experts and even claiming last month before the most recent revision that the May and April jobs numbers were revised upward. With him concluding, that's in stark contrast to what happened under the Biden administration when jobs numbers were routinely revised down after overly optimistic estimates. With that, echoing some of the more conspiratorial claims made by Trump and others, that the revisions are evidence that Democrats manipulated the data. Election day, look what happened two or three days before with massive wonderful job numbers, trying to get him elected or her elected, trying to get whoever the hell was running.

And so in his announcement of the nomination yesterday, you had Trump saying, Our economy is booming and EJ will ensure that the numbers released are honest and accurate. But many have interpreted that to mean that Antity, unlike the imaginary Democrat conspiracy, will actually manipulate the data to make Trump look good. And if that happens, like, it won't just be a political problem. It will affect the economy as well. Because the BLS's monthly reports are relied upon by economists, investors, business leaders, policymakers, and perhaps most importantly, the Federal Reserve, to make decisions.

Which on that note, Anthony hates Jerome Powell, a Fed share. He's accused him of breaking the law, driving up inflation, creating a stock market bubble, and crushing businesses by keeping interest rates what he called artificially low for too long and then raising them sharply. All of which is why Anthony said Trump would be justified in firing power. You know, anyway, you can see the real-time impact of these reports on stock, bond, and currency markets around the globe. And if people who's trusted them, that would create even more economic uncertainty,

as if the tariffs haven't already done that enough. Speaking of which, we just got July's inflation data from the consumer price index today, and it's not pretty. Prices rose 2.7% over the prior year and 0.2% over the prior month. But also another metric known as the core CPI, which excludes more volatile markets like food and energy, it rose even quicker. But they're growing over 3.1% over the prior year and 0.3% over the prior month, which is actually the fastest annual increase in five months and one of the biggest monthly jumps this year. So unlike Anthony, whose predicted inflation will come down this year, Many experts are interpreting this data as a sign that Trump's tariffs are being filmed.

And with that, they're guessing that businesses are beginning to run out of the materials that they stockpiled earlier in the year, so they'll really start passing off the cost of their consumers in the coming months. Which appears to be why even some fellow conservatives are speaking out against Anthony's nomination. For example, a senior fellow at a conservative American Enterprise Institute telling the Washington Post, he's utterly unqualified and as partisan as it gets. And that is you had an expert for the right-leaning tax foundation, as well as the AEI adding, There are a lot of competent conservative economists that could do this job. E.J. is not one of them.

And finally, you had a top economist in the Obama administration joining the pylon, saying, I don't think I have ever publicly criticized any presidential nominee before. But E.J. Anthony is completely unqualified to be BLS commissioner. He is an extreme partisan and does not have any relevant expertise. Now, as for Anthony himself, he said last week after the previous commissioner was fired, there are better ways to collect process and disseminate data. That is the task for the next BLS commissioner, and only consistent delivery of accurate data in a timely manner will rebuild the

trust that has been lost over the last several years. You know, whether he's sincere or sycophantic, we'll see. And in the meantime, if he's confirmed, economists will be scrutinizing BLS data even more for any hints of political interference. Whether that certain numbers no longer getting released, sudden methodological changes, or anything else. And then I've got more news for you in a minute, but first, you ever notice how everything gets a remake these days, except the stuff that actually deserves it? Well, I will say not here, because today's sponsor, Raycon, they just did it and they did it right.

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Just go to buy raycon.com slash to Franco to get 20% off fan favorites everyday earbuds classic. Or even easier, scan that QR code on screen. And then, next up in the news, this is big. Trump might be about to massively ease federal restrictions on marijuana. Maybe. Or because last week, the Wall Street Journal reported that Trump was deciding whether to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous drug after pop companies afford millions of dollars into Trump's political groups. And with a journal reporting that earlier this month,

Trump expressed his openness to the idea during a $1 million-dollar plate fundraiser at his New Jersey golf club featuring industry leaders who encouraged Trump to make the change. And reportedly, that conversation was part of a broader campaign by cannabis companies to push Trump to continue efforts, launch,

but ultimately not enacted by the Biden administration to reclassify marijuana as a Schedule 3 drug. A move that would ease restrictions as well as allow for the expansion of medical research and tax breaks for some cannabis companies. Right with the journal also reporting that marijuana companies and leaders

have, quote, contributed millions to the president's political group, and hired some of Washington's top lobbyists and advisors to Trump. And then, during a press conference yesterday, Trump was asked about the report. There's reporting that the administration is going to reclassify marijuana. Would that send mixed messages that if marijuana is okay, some drugs are okay, but we're trying to clean up crime? How do they go hand in hand? We're only looking at that. That's early, but you know, somebody reported it, which is fine.

We're looking at it. Some people like it. Some people hate it. Some people hate the whole concept of marijuana, because if it does bad for the children, It does bad for people that are older than children, but we're looking at reclassification and we'll make a determination over the next, I would say over the next few weeks. And that determination hopefully will be the right one. It's very complicated subject, they is, you know, the subject of marijuana.

I've heard great things having to do with medical, and I've had bad things having to do with just about everything else. It's a quick thing. Can we just take a moment to appreciate the line, quote, It does bad for the children, it does bad for the people that are older than children. Now, that said, of course, Trump, is correct that some people oppose marijuana reforms, but the way that peace-shaping the narrative here is a bit misleading.

Polling has consistently shown that Americans actually overwhelmingly support easing legal restrictions on pot at the federal level, including a majority of Republicans. In fact, a recent Pew survey found that just 12% of Americans think it should be prohibited across the board. So clearly, it's only a small minority of people who actually oppose relaxing restrictions. But among that minority is a key demographic, Trump supporters.

And understand, when you look online, it's clear that there are some major divisions among the MAGA base here. In one side, you have a lot of Trump supporters embracing the move, including prominent voices like former representative Matt Gates, who applauded the possible scheduling change. And if President Trump does this, the game is over for Democrats at the ballot box. We could be the party that allows people to safely use marijuana without pretending it's for your glaucoma-ridden cat. Its populism meets practicality.

Suddenly, MAGA hats in line at the dispensary, Patriots buying pre-rolls called 1776, Freedom Cush, beautiful. And on the other hand, you also had other big-name conservatives voicing opposition to the move, like Charlie Kirk, for example, who wrote on X, I hope this doesn't happen, we need to protect public spaces for kids. Everything already smells like weed, which is ridiculous. Let's make it harder to ruin public spaces, not easier. And so, you know, while Trump might be trying to paint this as a broadly divisive topic, you have some saying, it appears that he's waffling because of the divisions in his MAGA bubble.

With many noting that he has previously expressed support for easing marijuana restrictions, including as recently as this past September when he said on truth social that he was voting in favor of a Florida ballot, measure to legalize we. Writing, as I have previously stated, I believe it is time to end needless arrest and incarcerations of adults for small amounts of marijuana for personal use. We must also implement smart regulations while providing access for adults to safe tested product. And he even explicitly added that if elected, he would continue to focus on research to unlock the medical uses of marijuana to his Schedule 3 drug, among other reforms. And so for now, we'll have to see what he does, but I will say as far as my opinion, I hope he makes a change. I think the reclassification

is a smart move. It's a common sense move. And I say that as someone that does, smoke anymore. The current classification has been and is fucking stupid. But hey, whether you agree with me or you disagree with me, let me know your thoughts here. And then next up in the news, if being stalked wasn't already bad enough, a new study has found that being stocked is actually bad for your health. Right, there's this new study by Harvard, T.H. Chan School of Public Health. And specifically, this study found that women who experienced stocking or who obtained a restraining order were more likely to develop heart disease. And I don't mean by like a little, I'm talking a dramatic increase. In the 20 years covered by the study, the risk of heart disease was

41% higher in stalking victims and 70% higher in women who had obtained restraining words. And the report says that the reason for this increased risk is likely due to the psychological distress caused by stalking or having to take out a restraining order, which is often filed after someone's already experienced violence. Noting that previous work is documented an increased likelihood of distress with violence, including stalking, as well as a relationship between stress and heart disease. And very notably here, the research has explicitly said that these risks were still apparent despite other major factors that they also considered. For things including race,

socioeconomic background, family history, activity level, weight, smoking status, alcohol intake, and other medical conditions. And so these findings, they're massively significant for a number of different reasons. Right, first of all, it is horrifyingly common for a woman to experience stalking or having to take out restraining orders. Nearly one in every three women in America has been stalked at some point in their life. And while it's difficult to bend down exact data on restraining orders, one study from 2002, found that out of the 1.5 million women experiencing intimate partner violence each year, around 20% of them, or 300,000, take out restraining orders. So that said, the full figures are likely higher because the studies over two decades old, and it only accounts for the most common kind of restraining orders. So we're talking about something that is very prevalent. And the fact that these common occurrences have been linked to heart disease is incredibly alarming, because heart disease is that number one cause a death in the United States. CDC estimates say that it was actually responsible for about one in every five female deaths in 2023. And in addition to this being incredibly alarming information, this Harvard report, it's a landmark study and the first of its kind, right? Because as the report itself notes, well, previous, research is linked to violence as a risk factor for heart disease, most of that work has focused exclusively on physical violence. But as the study notes, some of the most common forms of

violence women experience, including stalking, have received little attention in the cardiovascular literature. And so as a result, you have experts who led this study arguing that their work shows that being stalked and filing restraining orders or acts of violence that need to be considered in heart disease evaluation and prevention with one senior author explaining, our study highlights that these preventable, common, non-contact forms of violence against women are health hazards and need to be considered as such. Just like we consider smoking or poor diet. And adding that more attention needs to be given to the experience of violence and health care settings and providers, quote, need to improve screening for stalking and other forms of violence

and provide resources for women to protect themselves. And then also, beyond that, you have researchers and others in the field saying, this study, it shows that there's need for more work in this area. But with that, some experts have said that these kinds of studies are being jeopardized by the Trump administration. Noting that the Harvard report was partially funded by the National Institutes of Health, but the administration recently canceled funding for the NIH as well as numerous research efforts that are specifically focused on women's health. But that, my friend, you beautiful bastard,

is where your Philip DeFranco show for today ends. But remember, I also put out a big, beefy podcast for you today with Dr. Mike. And you can watch or listen to it right now on Apple Podcast, Spotify, and even YouTube. But no matter what, thank you for watching. I love yo faces, and I'll see you right back here tomorrow.