Logan Paul on YouTube suicide forest video: It was ‘a horrible lapse of judgment’

YouTube personality Logan Paul on Thursday said the backlash he faced for posting a video of a dead body has been “the hardest time of my life” and said he’s learned from the experience. 

“Dude, this has been, to be honest with you, the hardest time of my life. I’ve never been hated by the whole world. It’s been something to definitely overcome,” Paul said on “Good Morning America.”

“This was a horrible lapse of judgment. And I can, will and am going to learn from it and be a better person,” Paul added.

“I’ve never been hated by the whole world…” @LoganPaul tells @michaelstrahan he made a “horrible lapse of judgment” by posting controversial YouTube video in Japan’s suicide forest. https://t.co/FBnkEYbCxg pic.twitter.com/TYsvCAgrmO

— Good Morning America (@GMA) February 1, 2018

{mosads}Paul, who has more than 16 million subscribers on YouTube, sparked controversy last month when he posted a video showing a dead body hanging from a tree. The video was recorded in a Japanese forest known as a location that attracts people considering suicide.

In the video, which was taken down, Paul talks about the Aokigahara forest. When he comes across a dead body, the face of which is blurred, Paul asks: “Yo, are you alive?”

Paul apologized for the video last month and said he had intended to use the controversy to raise awareness for suicide prevention. He later pledged to donate $1 million to suicide prevention groups.

YouTube canceled planned projects with Paul following outcry over the video and removed him from its premium ad lineup.