video shared on Instagram The Pentagon alleges it paid YouTube star Jimmy Mr. Beast Donaldson to persuade children to join the military.

Verdict: False

The Department of Defense and MrBeast had intended to collaborate on content development, but the agreement fell through.

Fact check:

According to , Donaldson recently announced his engagement to girlfriend Thea Booysen, who also runs a YouTube channel. BBC. He proposed to her on Christmas Day while her family was visiting, the paper said, and told People magazine that he wanted an “intimate” proposal and had similar plans for their wedding. .

An Instagram video alleges that the Pentagon paid Donaldson to increase its declining hiring numbers. The post features a young man speaking to the camera, along with an image of the content creator and an image of the Department of Defense.

“Taxpayer money was funneled to Mr. Beast to get kids into the military,” the man speaking in the video claims. Additionally, he continued to claim, without evidence, that certain videos from Donaldson were funded by the Department of Defense.

“Apparently Mr. Beast was paid by the government to create propaganda content to persuade children to join the military?” the caption reads in part.

However, this post is not accurate. While it is true that the Department of Defense approved funding to develop content with MrBeast, it ultimately did not materialize. rolling stone. “We created a PAA for social influencer Mr. Beast, but the PAA was canceled because he ultimately did not support the production because he did not go to Puerto Rico for hurricane relief.” A Pentagon spokesperson told Rolling Stone. Although the article states that military conscription has reached historic lows, it does not say that the project is aimed at increasing conscription.

MrBeast made X post This is confirmed. “They were scheduled to help with several hurricane relief projects, but they never materialized,” it said. (Related: Is the Pentagon using Operation Necromancer to intercept drones?)

That’s not true. They were scheduled to help with some hurricane relief projects, but they never materialized. Can I go a week without someone making something up about me 😭

— MrBeast (@MrBeast) January 3, 2025

Check Your Fact has contacted a Department of Defense spokesperson for comment.