Английская Википедия:Gaia, Inc.

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Gaia, Inc. is an American alternative media video on demand streaming service founded by Jirka Rysavy in 1988. The company produces and releases content focusing on a variety of topics, with an overall focus on mindfulness, alternative medicine, and several forms of divination. Gaia has been criticized as a "conspiracy theory hub," with content featuring British conspiracy theorist David Icke. Additional content includes videos promoting the chemtrail conspiracy theory,Шаблон:Citation needed UFO conspiracy theories, astral projection, and the Lost City of Atlantis.

History

Origins

Gaia was founded in 1988 by Czechoslovakian-born entrepreneur Jirka Rysavy. Originally branding itself as a yoga equipment brand, Gaia sold mail-order exercise videos and alternative medicine products.

Gaia began several acquisition and merging endeavors in the early 2000s. In 2001, Gaia merged with the Californian company Real Goods Solar, a residential and commercial solar power integrator with a focus on off-the-grid living. Gaia continued expansion and in 2003 bought a 50.1% share in its UK distributor Leisure Systems International (LSI). In 2005, Gaia acquired the media assets of GoodTimes Entertainment and Jetlag Productions. The company additionally acquired both Lime TV and Zaadz.com in 2007 to start what was called the LOHAS network (LOHAS stands for Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability).

2010s–present

In 2011, Gaia launched Gaia TV, a streaming service for videos on yoga, meditation, and fringe science. The company 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.

In 2016, Sequential Brands Group purchased the Gaiam brand and yoga equipment unit for $167 million. Gaia subsequently rebranded themselves, focusing solely on its alternative media streaming service. Over the next three years, the service would increase in popularity. In 2019, USA Today ranked Gaia, Inc as the world's fastest-growing retailer, spending up to 120% of its revenue on advertising.

Gaia added live streaming events from a new event center at its Louisville, Colorado campus in 2019. Events are live streamed in 185 countries with simultaneous translation.

In February 2021, Business Insider published an investigative piece detailing workplace harassment and concerns about the surveillance of Gaia employees by the company. These concerns stemmed from Gaia offering blood tests offered to employees, as well as unsupported reports that CEO Rysavy had installed 'a machine' on the roof of Gaia headquarters to 'psychically monitor employees.' 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!" Lovato came under scrutiny for the partnership from fans due to Gaia's controversial content.

Streaming services and programming

Gaia provides services to subscribers in 185 countries, streaming more than 8,000 films. Gaia surpassed 500,000 paid subscribers on September 13, 2018.

Programming

Programming topics on Gaia range from mainstream alternative medicine, such as mindfulness meditation and basic yoga, to conspiracy theories and fringe theories, including vaccine misinformation, UFO conspiracy theories, astral projection, and the Illuminati. Other topics incorporated into Gaia's programming include:

• Metaphysics: Gaia offers fringe metaphysical content, with a focus on Western esotericism, particularly involving universal consciousness and energy.
• Astrology
• Pseudo-archaeology: Gaia's programming includes a wide range of discussions relating to this topic, including but not limited to the discussion of Turkey's Gobekli Tepe archeological site, as well as unsubstantiated theories on how aliens built pyramids on Earth and Mars.
• Alchemy is promoted as a current pseudoscience via Gaia's alchemy-focused programs, hosted by Theresa Bullard.
• Mysticism: Programs on Gaia primarily address New Age and Eastern mysticism.
• Kundalini: Gaia has beginner and moderate Kundalini yoga videos.
• Alternative medicine: A large portion of Gaia's content centers on energy healing, naturopathy, traditional Chinese medicine, Ayurveda or time travel.
• Nutrition: Some of Gaia's content promotes balanced diets. Some were created in a partnership with Mayo Clinic (though this partnership has been controversial). It also promotes practices such as detox, superfoods or Paleolithic diet.
• Meditation: Gaia offers different meditation series that range from established relaxation meditation to highly fringe attempts to control reality or cross into parallel universes.

Conspiracy theories

Due to the advocacy for debunked conspiracy theories present on Gaia's website, the service has been deplatformed on multiple social media sites, including YouTube and Facebook. Conspiracy theories frequently shared on their streaming service include the assassination of John F. Kennedy, Operation Paperclip, Project MKUltra, and Big Pharma conspiracy theories, including vaccine misinformation.

Additional conspiracy theories center around outer space, UFOs, extraterrestrial life, and the Pentagon's Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program.

A show hosted by American radio host George Noory covers several pseudoscientific topics such as psychic vampires, Hollow Earth theory, and mummified aliens. This content has been criticized as misleading or falsified.

Lawsuit and accusations of Luciferianism

In 2018, conspiracy theorist David Wilcock left Gaia. After his departure, his resignation letter was brought to public attention, supposedly claiming Gaia was spreading "Lucifer propaganda." These accusations generated a substantial amount of hate mail and death threats toward employees at Gaia. Wilcock eventually apologized to Gaia, and stated in his apology letter that his words were taken out of context and were meant to remain internal.

That same year, Patty Greer, a filmmaker formerly contracted by Gaia, accused the company of "promoting Luciferianism and using directed-energy weapons against critics." Greer claims she was attacked with a "directed energy weapon" in the Phoenix, Arizona airport in 2017. In addition, Greer alleged her films were intentionally removed from the Gaia website. She stated that her refusal to sign a non-disclosure agreement involved in regaining distribution rights to her films ultimately led to her content being intentionally removed from the site.

Following numerousШаблон:Clarify videos and posts from Greer claiming Gaia was infiltrated by satanists and reptilians, 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.

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'). Many of the reports Greer received included the same claims from David Wilcock's resignation letter, which alleged satanists had infiltrated Gaia.

On December 14, 2018, the case was dismissed without prejudice, noting that Greer had not been served. On December 27, Gaia filed another lawsuit against Greer, seeking one million in damages. 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.

External links

• Шаблон:Official website