Vtubing is just a medium like any.
This is like saying "should youtube channels stay out of politics?" or "should twitter accounts stay out of politics?"
And the answer is a big "well it depends".
Take Hololive as an example, it's a company meant to offer an entertainment service to an audience as wide as possible and its goal is to make money.
They would not benefit from politics at all.
Their fanbase is too big, it would turn off a part of it or set it against itself, they would lose viewers and profits.
But a random small indie? They might have nothing to lose, and it can even help them gain an audience.
It's all a matter of execution really.
If a vtuber goes full politics that's going to become part of her brand, her identity, people who don't want to deal with that will just avoid them.
So it all really depends on how far the vtubers take the politics. Which demographics they want to appeal to. And what sort of bridges they are willing to burn.
I'd say this, burning bridges without gaining anything is flat out stupid, indies can be retarded all they want, they don't run a business, if they want this to be a hobby and just a way to express themselves and have no filter they can go for it.
But going hard on politics won't help their numbers or their social networking.
There's a degree of "safe" politics that a vtuber can engage.
Basically mainstream generic opinions, which is what many indies do.
This still filters people but the filter isn't as strong.
But the harder they go, bigger the filter.
There's a difference between a vtuber having a rule against anti trans comments vs a vtuber going on a long twitter thread naming multiple friends who played the wizard game and calling them all out for literally killing trans.
There's a difference between saying guns are based and dropping FBI statistics.
I'd say politics in moderation are a neutral or even a gain with some audiences, but going too hard will filter your audience much more.
It could work out if a vtuber manages to really tap into that audience but that's like saying that buying the lottery is a good idea if you win it.
Overall as a whole, the more politics are added into vtubing, worse it will be for everyone.
Because the escapism factor will be lost. Because collabs, interactions and social networking will be more difficult. Because sharing a vtuber or recommending her will be harder.
I think it's a net negative.
But I think it's inevitable as the medium grows.
