American streaming service company
Gaia, Inc., formerly Gaiam, is an American alternative media video on demand streaming service founded by Jirka Rysavy.
Gaia has been criticized as a "conspiracy theory hub,"[3] with content featuring British conspiracy theorist David Icke. Additional content includes videos promoting the chemtrail conspiracy theory, UFO conspiracy theories, Astral projection, and The Lost City of Atlantis.
Gaia is a streaming service that largely features videos and contains written articles.[4]
History
Origins
Initially called Gaiam, a combination of "Gaia," the Greek mother earth deity, and the phrase "I am,"[5] Gaiam was founded in 1988 by Czechoslovakian entrepreneur Jirka Rysavy.[6]
Gaiam was founded in the late 1980s as a Yoga equipment brand, including mail-order exercise videos, amongst other alternative medicine products.[7]
In 2001, Gaiam merged with the Californian company Real Goods Solar, a residential and commercial solar power integrator with a focus on off-the-grid living.[8] Gaiam continued expansion and in 2003 bought a 50.1% share in its UK distributor Leisure Systems International (LSI).[9]
As Gaiam continued to expand its video service, in 2005, Gaiam acquired the media assets of GoodTimes Entertainment and Jetlag Productions.[10]
Gaiam acquired both Lime TV[11] and Zaadz.com[12] in 2007 to start what was called the LOHAS network (LOHAS stands for Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability).[12]
2010s – Present
In 2011, the Gaiam launched Gaiam TV, a streaming service for videos on yoga, meditation, and fringe science.[13] As Gaiam grew their streaming services, they acquired Vivendi Entertainment, a DVD distributor from Vivendi subsidiary Universal Music Group Distribution, merging it with its home entertainment division to form Gaiam Vivendi Entertainment.[14][15]
Sequential Brands Group purchased the Gaiam brand and yoga equipment unit for $167 million in 2016, after which the company rebranded from Gaiam to 'Gaia,' focusing on its video streaming service.
As Gaia's alternative media streaming services continued to grow, 2019 showed increased popularity for the streaming service. USA Today ranked Gaia, Inc as the world's fastest-growing retailer,[16] spending up to 120% of revenue on advertising.[17]
Gaia added live streaming events from a new event center at its Louisville campus in 2019[18][19][20] Events are live streamed in 185 countries with simultaneous translation.[21]
In February 2021, Business Insider published an investigative piece detailing workplace harassment and concerns about the surveillance of Gaia employees by the company.[22] Concerns stem from blood tests offered to employees by Gaia, and unsupported reports that Rysavy had installed 'a machine' on the roof of Gaia headquarters to 'psychically monitor employees.'[22] Gaia and Rysavy have also been accused of manipulating the building's energy using crystals.
In November 2021, American singer and actor Demi Lovato became the first celebrity ambassador for Gaia. Lovato announced via their Instagram that they were partnering with Gaia, stating, "Thrilled to be a Gaia ambassador, understanding the world around us (the known and the unknown) is so exciting to me!" [23][24][25][26] Lovato came under scrutiny for the partnership from fans due to Gaia's controversial content.[27]
Streaming Services and Programming
Gaia provides services to subscribers in 185 countries, streaming more than 8,000 films.[28] Gaia surpassed 500,000 paid subscribers on September 13, 2018.[29]
Programming
Topics range from mainstream alternative medicine, such as mindfulness meditation and basic yoga, to conspiracy theories and fringe theories. This includes vaccine misinformation, UFO conspiracy theories, astral projection, and the Illuminati.
- Astrology, the pseudoscience of attempting to divine the future based on the movements of celestial bodies.[30]
- Metaphysics, a branch of philosophy that studies ideas about the nature of reality and being and includes ontology, cosmology, and epistemology.[31] Gaia offers fringe metaphysical content, with a focus on Western esotericism topics such as universal consciousness and energy.
- Pseudo-archaeology, fringe theories on ongoing archaeological debates far from the mainstream.[32][33] Gaia's programming ranges from discussion of Turkey's Gobekli Tepe archeological site,[34][35] through to theories on how aliens built the pyramids on Earth as well as on Mars.
- Alchemy, an ancient practice of attempting to transmute matter and create elixiers of everlasting life.[36][37] It is promoted as a current pseudoscience via Gaia's alchemy-focused programs hosted by Theresa Bullard.[38]
- Mysticism, topics such as the classification of mystical experiences, and their nature in different religions and mystical traditions.[39] Mystics differ from culture to culture (e.g. shamans, theurgists, Daoists, Kabbalists, Western esotericism, Buddhists, or Christians).[40] Programs on Gaia address primarily New Age and Eastern mysticism.
- Kundalini, a primal force or energy thought believed in by some Hindu practices,[41] and proposed to be controllable by yoga, meditation, or chanting.[42][43] Gaia has beginner and moderate Kundalini yoga videos.
- Alternative medicine, non-scientific or counterfactual attempts to replicate the healing effects of the medicine. A large portion of Gaia's content centers on energy healing, naturopathy, traditional chinese medicine, Ayurveda or time travel.
- Nutrition, the diet and nutrients necessary to maintain life and health. Some of Gaia's content promotes balanced diets. Some were created in a partnership with Mayo Clinic[44][45] (though this partnership has been controversial).[46] It also promotes practices such as detox, superfoods or Paleolithic diet.
- Meditation, the mental practice of focusing on a particular object, thought, or activity to improve one's mind, has been shown to be valuable for relaxation and stress reduction.[47] Gaia offers different meditation series that range from established relaxation meditation to highly fringe attempts to control reality or cross into parallel universes.
A show hosted by George Noory, covers several pseudoscientific topics such as psychic vampires, Hollow Earth theory, and mummified aliens.[48][49][50][51] This content has been criticized as misleading or falsified.[48][52]
Lawsuit and Accusations of Luciferianism
In 2018, conspiracy theorist David Wilcock left Gaia. After his departure, his resignation letter circled the internet, supposedly claiming Gaia was spreading "Lucifer propaganda." These accusations generated substantial hate mail and death threats toward Gaia staff. Wilcock eventually apologized to Gaia, and stated in his apology letter that his words were taken out of context and was meant to remain internal.[22][53]
That same year, Patty Greer, a filmmaker formerly contracted by Gaia, accused Gaia of "promoting Luciferianism and using directed-energy weapons against critics."[54][55][56][57] Greer claims she was attacked with a "directed energy weapon" in the Phoenix, Arizona airport in 2017.[28]
Greer alleged her films were intentionally removed from the website after she refused to sign a non-disclosure agreement as part of a deal in 2015 for her to gain distribution rights to her films, which were previously sold to Gaia in 2011.[28]
Following numerous[clarification needed] videos and posts from Greer claiming Gaia was infiltrated by satanists and reptilians, and accusing them of using a directed energy weapon against her,[56] Gaia sued Greer for slander. Gaia claimed that Greer was retaliating after a decline in viewership of her videos hosted on Gaia's streaming services.[28]
In response to the lawsuit, Greer defended herself by saying she "simply reports" on what she read and heard from sources and that she was given information from Gaia employees under the username #GEM (which stands for 'Gaia Employee Movement').[53] Many of the reports Greer received included the same claims from David Wilcock's resignation letter, which alleged satanists had infiltrated Gaia.[56]
On December 14, 2018, the case was dismissed without prejudice, noting that Greer hadn't been served. On December 27, Gaia filed another lawsuit against Greer, seeking one million in damages.[58] The lawsuit was settled in 2019, and Greer posted an apology to her website as part of a settlement agreement and removed all of the content surrounding Gaia and #GEM.[53]
Conspiracy Theories
Gaia's controversial topics and frequent advocating for debunked conspiracy theories has gotten the company deplatformed from multiple social media sites, such as YouTube and Facebook.[59]
Conspiracy theories frequently shared by Gaia, and platformed on their streaming services, include the assassination of John F. Kennedy,[60][61] Operation Paperclip,[62][63] Project MKUltra,[64][65] and Big Pharma conspiracy theories,[66][67] including vaccine misinformation.[59]
Additional conspiracy theories center around outer space, and UFO, extraterrestrial life, and including that by government programs, such as the Pentagon’s Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program.[68]
US$66.827 Million (Fiscal Year Ended 31 December 2020)[2]