# I'm Being Shunned!?

**Source:** Cary Hardy  
**Type:** video  
**Published:** 2020-07-07  
**Duration:** 13m 48s  
**Beat:** Pinball

**URL:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JGgsxd9wFis

---

## Analysis

Cary Hardy reports being denied permission to film content at a location for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles pinball, citing a message claiming Stern Pinball requested no taping. Hardy expresses frustration about perceived industry censorship and notes his content stopped being promoted on a major pinball media website in June, speculating about potential bias from manufacturers or their influence over media coverage.

### Key Claims

- [HIGH] A location owner told Hardy that Stern Pinball requested no taping at their place — _Hardy received a message stating 'I have spoken with Stern and based off your previous videos they as well as us request no taping at our place'_
- [HIGH] Hardy's content stopped being promoted on a pinball media website after June 1st — _Hardy checked a website and found the last promotion of his content was June 1st, with no promotions since_
- [HIGH] Hardy ordered Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles pinball and expects delivery by end of month — _Stated directly: 'I've ordered one. It will be here hopefully by the end of the month because they are on back order.'_
- [HIGH] Hardy was previously given permission to film Hot Wheels pinball about a week before the Turtles incident — _Hardy stated: 'merely a week or so ago i was given basically the all green to come in and record me playing hot wheels'_
- [HIGH] Hardy does not accept sponsorships to maintain review independence — _'I'm never going to have sponsors and stuff like that because I'm not going to talk all lollipops and gumdrops about things'_

### Notable Quotes

> "it's a conflict of interest you making a review video at our place i'm going to have to request that no pics or video be recorded"
> — **Location owner (anonymous)**, ~2:30
> _The core complaint: location claimed Stern requested no filming due to conflict of interest_

> "but i just think it's a little messed up that you have your fingers deep into all these other places to keep certain individuals from doing i guess filming or showing off your product"
> — **Cary Hardy**, ~6:45
> _Hardy's main grievance: perception of Stern using influence to prevent content creators from filming_

> "What was it that did it? And what I'm saying is that there's a website that has all the different kind of content, and they used to post my new videos on there"
> — **Cary Hardy**, ~9:00
> _Introduces second layer of alleged censorship: media website stopped promoting his content_

> "if it gets to the point to where I do become the new Kaneda, which I don't want to be a new Kaneda... definitely no one's going to want to put my content out there"
> — **Cary Hardy**, ~19:30
> _Hardy compares himself to Kaneda and expresses concern about being labeled as negative/critical_

> "the fact remains is that I can only be shunned and silenced to an extent. There are so many other ways I could go about getting a hold of a machine"
> — **Cary Hardy**, ~21:00
> _Hardy's resolve despite perceived restrictions; indicates he will find alternative methods_

### Entities

| Name | Type | Context |
|------|------|---------|
| Cary Hardy | person | Pinball content creator and YouTuber discussing allegations of being blocked from filming content and having his promotions removed from media platforms |
| Stern Pinball | company | Alleged by location owner to have requested no filming of their machines; subject of Hardy's criticism regarding content restrictions and industry influence |
| Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles | game | Stern pinball machine that Hardy was attempting to film but was denied permission; Hardy has ordered a copy |
| Kaneda | person | Another pinball content creator whom Hardy references as an example of someone perceived negatively in the industry; Hardy expresses not wanting to become 'the new Kaneda' |
| Hot Wheels | game | Stern pinball machine Hardy was previously allowed to film at the same location about a week before the Turtles incident |
| Jurassic Park | game | Stern pinball game Hardy praised in previous content; compared favorably to TMNT regarding gameplay but less favorable regarding art package and cooperative mode |
| Heavy Metal | game | Stern pinball game Hardy created content about after June 1st cutoff date when media promotions ceased |
| Addams Family | game | Stern pinball game with a finale video by Hardy that was not promoted after June 1st despite high community anticipation |
| Back to the Future | game | Stern pinball game Hardy created a video about after June 1st promotion cutoff |
| Action Hero | game | Game content created by Hardy; 'Last Action Hero' finale video mentioned as not being promoted after June 1st |

### Topics

- **Primary:** Content creator restrictions and filming permissions, Alleged manufacturer influence over location policies, Media platform promotion bias and content suppression, Industry censorship and content creator relationships
- **Secondary:** Content creator independence vs. critical reviewing, Pinball game reviews and purchasing decisions

### Sentiment

**Negative** (-0.75) — Hardy is frustrated and feels wronged by perceived censorship from both location operators (allegedly influenced by Stern) and media platforms. He's resigned but defiant, stating he'll find alternative ways to create content. Despite some acknowledgment of business rights, he clearly views the situation as unfair and concerning for the broader creator ecosystem.

### Signals

- **[business_signal]** Stern Pinball appears to be exerting control over third-party locations regarding content creator filming permissions, suggesting a broader policy restricting media capture (confidence: medium) — Location owner's message: 'I have spoken with Stern and based off your previous videos they as well as us request no taping at our place'
- **[community_signal]** Cary Hardy alleges systematic suppression of his content creation through location restrictions and media platform de-promotion, suggesting broader industry tensions with critical content creators (confidence: medium) — Location owner cited Stern Pinball directive; media site stopped promoting Hardy's content June 1st without explanation; Hardy speculates about manufacturer influence
- **[market_signal]** TMNT pinball is on backorder; Hardy expects delivery by end of month, indicating strong demand or supply constraints (confidence: high) — 'I've ordered one. It will be here hopefully by the end of the month because they are on back order.'
- **[community_signal]** Hardy references Kaneda as a cautionary example of a critical creator becoming persona non grata in the industry, suggesting potential reputation management or shunning of outspoken voices (confidence: medium) — 'if it gets to the point to where I do become the new Kaneda... definitely no one's going to want to put my content out there'
- **[sentiment_shift]** Hardy expresses growing concern about industry censorship and the viability of independent critical content creation in pinball media (confidence: high) — Throughout video Hardy discusses accumulating frustrations about restrictions, media silence, and being treated as untrustworthy by manufacturers

---

## Transcript

 I honestly don't know how to start this video because something happened today and it's like a part of me doesn't want to take it personally, but the other part of me reads this and goes, well, I kind of have to take it personally. so I was really excited to be able to go somewhere and get a chance at playing Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles I could have waited another week or so and played an LE which I still will I will still go to that particular location and play the LE once it arrives which should be like I said any next next week maybe even this week so but aside from that I felt like I need to talk about this And I almost think I should sleep on this before I start just talking about it. But I'm like, you know what? Fuck it. This needs to be mentioned because it's a concerning thing to me, honestly. And so when it comes to me bringing my camera and being able to get footage of me playing the game, that was what the plan was and the funny thing is is that merely a week or so ago i was given basically the all green to come in and record me playing hot wheels and doing a little video about it and that was all good but evidently that attitude or plans changed today whenever i was on my way to play Turtles, I was then notified, and I'm going to keep this anonymous, because certain individuals don't need to be called out on this, but it's a little bit concerning to me, because I don't know if it is just the individual, and they're just trying to protect their business, which is by all means, you have every right to do so. So that's why I am abiding by your request. So, but whenever I was telling this person that I'm going to bring, you know, up there to do a video and everything, and I was planning on promoting and all that stuff and junk to help this business, uh, no matter what my feelings were on turtles i was still going to promote this business because they allowed me to come in and experiment this machine you know test it out and play it but then i get this message it's a conflict of interest you making a review video at our place i'm going to have to request that no pics or video be recorded if you want to come and play it that's fine but i have spoken was stern and based off of your previous videos they as well as us request no taping at our place so with that being said and like I said the initial my initial response is like understandable but then minutes turned into hours and I was on the road driving this started to fester a little bit with me and I was like wait a minute that kind of messed up as if I guess the it's just the assumption that whatever content I put out especially I guess in regards to Stern it's gonna be negative I do not agree with that. I will say that I will speak my mind about products from any manufacturer or anything. I'm not going to play a game and if I don't like it, talk it up. I'm not going to do that, which is probably why, like I said, I'm never going to have sponsors and stuff like that because I'm not going to talk all lollipops and gumdrops about things. But if I do enjoy something or I like the product, by all means, I will promote it. So with the previous video that I've already put out now. I promoted Turtles. I've ordered one. It will be here hopefully by the end of the month because they are on back order. But what does that say, Stern, that I just don't like anything you put out and will never buy anything you make? No, what it says is that when you build and make good things, I'll buy it. The odds of me buying a product that is good are very high compared to you giving out a product that is okay. I got Turtles because it had a great art package. It has cooperative mode, which is a big selling point. The gameplay is great the animations are but it had more more of a complete package than even your Jurassic Park game Jurassic Park by all means was great game I praise it highly and still would like to have it in my collection but due to the fact that Turtles has the ability to do cooperative mode and the art package is much more pleasing to the eye than Jurassic Park I pulled the trigger on TMNT per my own preference i just think it's a little messed up that you have your fingers deep into all these other places to keep certain individuals from doing i guess filming or showing off your product that shows me that you have ill faith in your own product right there but aside from possibility like i said this is a lot of this is speculation guys none of this is hardcore facts But aside from Stern supposedly trying to silence me or censor me, whatever, I have to look at something else here because I'm curious. Because there's also a particular website that I'm sure a great deal of you guys visit. Let me refresh it just to make sure that nothing's been updated in the last so many minutes or hours or whatever. so yeah there's a particular website that posts everything and anything pinball creator wise for everyone to see and it's run by i mean i don't want to call them out i should message them out of curiosity but the reason why i not is because i also just like like okay that fine if you don want to put my stuff on there it your choice I not going to make you do something that you don want to do But I mainly just curious like what happened What was it that did it? And what I'm saying is that there's a website that has all the different kind of content, and they used to post my new videos on there. Like, hey, this is Kerry's new video. This is Kerry's new video. And then all of a sudden, as of what was the last time that any of my content was shared, was, man, I'm scrolling down a great deal. The last thing that was shared was on June 1st, over a month ago now, was the last time that this website promoted any of my content. So what has happened by that time? What videos could have came out that it could have made it to where all of a sudden this site's no longer promoting my content? Let's see here. The next video I posted after June 1st was the Jurassic Park topper. Hmm. What was the next video after that? Stern's Heavy Metal. Hmm. But the next video after that, my last action hero finale. So it was like, you know, showing off a machine. Another one was a pen sound mix, a Kaneda video. And then my Addams Family finale, a video that many people have been waiting for over a year for. That video doesn't get promoted either. And then I have my reading reviews and my Back to the Future and my most recent Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles one. But for some reason, June 1st on, none of my content has been promoted. And like I said, that is their choice. They can do whatever they want to with their website. It's just one of those things where I'm like, I'm just kind of curious. Was it something I said? But when I see stuff like this, I'm just like, huh, interesting. So it makes me wonder what's going on when it comes to the pinball media side of things and how far does the manufacturers have a grasp on them. And I want to say that the individual that runs the website shouldn't be in Stern's pocket or anything like that because they work for somebody else. So I'm like, what is it that I could have said or done to make it to where my content is no longer being promoted? It's just a matter of curiosity. And that's the thing, guys, is that I don't even really promote my own stuff anymore. I used to. I used to put it up on the Pinball Enthusiast Facebook as well as a bunch of other pages. I used to just spam. And then I even got tired of it myself. I was like, you know what, the way I see it is if my content is good enough and people enjoy it, they will seek it out. They will come to me. I don need to throw things in people face every time I put out a new video or things for people to see or whatever I would much rather prefer it to be I put up a video and if you like my content enough then you subscribed and you hit the damn bell notification so that way you will get notified and see it and in your own sparing time, watch it, if you so choose to. That's the way I would rather have it. I would rather have it to where people willingly come to see my content, not me like, Watch my stuff, please, while you're scrolling through your Facebook thing. I mean, because this is all optional. My content is optional. Do what you want. I'm very adamant on, you know, whatever you do you, I'll do me. But it would seem that there's a little bit of bias in the system here. And I just don't know why. So, whatever, but it just kind of makes me wonder, like, wonder what's going on. I still have a couple of other people that I'm going to contact, again, just to ask, like, out of curiosity. But it is what it is, but it's just something to think about, guys, Is that if it gets to the point to where I do become the new Kaneda, which I don't want to be a new Kaneda. I would just rather be the first Carrie. But if I'm looked at as being the new Kaneda, then definitely no one's going to want to put my content out there because they think that everything I've got to say is bad for the hobby, which is not true. It's not. but certain videos, yeah, there are negative stuff to it because I just see it that way. It's the same ordeal. And the thing is, when you watch my content and you think that's all I do is negative, I'm not going to force you to change your mind. If that's all John Youssi, then that's what John Youssi. It's your own free will to watch and think the way you think. But it's just a little upsetting that when it comes to wanting to be able to film, record, and play these new titles, then more than likely I'm not going to be able to do so with ease. I'm going to have to go about doing it another way. But the fact remains is that I can only be shunned and silenced to an extent. There are so many other ways I could go about getting a hold of a machine to play it and get it filmed and put up on YouTube or whatever. And even then, even then, if I start getting like, you know, struck for copyright for having their content or whatever on my channel, then by all means, we can just resort to this format right here where I just speak my mind. Can't copyright my opinions. It's whatever. But like, you know, that I just felt like once again, I needed the vent. I'm not even drinking, which is a good thing But I am getting hungry So I'm getting a little cranky By all means guys, thumbs up Hit the subscribe button if you haven't already And until next time Peace out

_(Acquisition: youtube_groq_whisper, Enrichment: v3)_

---

*Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: 069a3375-deb2-4e14-9779-72f7a3be9bac*