jeds_adventures/TikTok
- A TikTok user went viral as an ex-Amish person trying McDonald's and cocktails for the first time.
- A video showing Jedediah drinking a milkshake for the first time got over nine million views.
- But the account is satirical, according to reporting from Newsweek.
- Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.
A TikTok user known as Jedediah went viral by documenting his life as an ex-Amish community member trying new things like a Long Island Iced Tea and McDonald's for the first time.
But a series of TikToks from another account allege that Jedediah was a fictional character.
According to a Newsweek report, a since-deleted TikTok account with the username @iseeyou3156 posted three videos alleging that Jedediah is actually a man from South Carolina named Ethan Linder.
The videos on the since-deleted account's page showed photos of Jedediah with a woman, who is purportedly his wife, and three kids, Newsweek reported. The text in the video read, "Married. From South Carolina. Not Amish."
Linder's wife, Kaitlyn Linder, confirmed to Newsweek that the account was "a joke."
"His sister literally posted a stupid video that took off unintentionally. Nothing has been scammed from anyone. This is absolutely ridiculous over a stupid TikTok," Kaitlyn told Newsweek. Insider could not immediately contact Kaitlyn, whose account was private.
The Amish are a Christian community known for living without electricity and modern innovations like cars and telephones. In the US, most Amish people live in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Indiana, according to data compiled by Elizabethtown College's Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies.
The first video posted to the @Jeds_Adventures account showed Jedediah - the man alleged to be Ethan - "trying a milkshake for the first time," as the caption read. Weird Al Yankovic's "Amish Paradise," a cover of Coolio's "Gangsta's Paradise," soundtracked the video, which gained over nine million views.
The TikTok page, which has 369,000 followers, now includes the phrase "Satire Entertainment" in its bio, though the Daily Dot reported that the clarification appears to be a new addition.
Newsweek also reported that the account seeking to expose the Jedediah character alleged that the account once shared a post with a Venmo link for "Jed's next adventure."
Kaitlyn denied allegations that there was a "scam" involved, Newsweek reported.
Still, followers of Jedediah's journey - even if it's only satire - have said they enjoyed seeing the purportedly ex-Amish man try new things.
"I love Jed! It makes me happy that he's learning new experiences," says one comment. "It's what life is all about, trying things, falling over, and getting back up."
The comments sections of Jedediah's videos are filled with suggestions from people asking the man to try their favorite foods and see his reactions.
The same is true on Jedediah's Instagram account, which has 6,800 followers. Real or fake, one recent Instagram commenter said, "I think you have the best content on the Internet."
Insider sent a message to an Instagram account linked to the TikTok page but did not immediately hear back.