Ex Fyre Fest designer says fraudster Billy McFarland, Anna Delvey, Luigi Mangione have one thing in common

The erstwhile societal media decorator for Fyre Festival says societal media is fueling the idolization of atrocious actors and scammers, specifically naming Fyre Festival creator Billy McFarland, notorious scam socialite Anna Delvey Sorokin and UnitedHealthcare CEO execution fishy Luigi Mangione arsenic premier examples.

Oren Aks spoke with Fox News Digital aft Fyre Festival 2, a do-over mentation of the archetypal Fyre Festival that failed successful 2017, was postponed conscionable weeks earlier it was scheduled to instrumentality spot successful Playa del Carmen, Mexico, betwixt May 30 and June 2. 

Oren Aks, who was employed with Jerry Media erstwhile helium did graphic plan and societal media strategy enactment for Fyre Festival successful 2017, told Fox News Digital that, successful the property of societal media, the nationalist makes icons retired of con artists and criminals similar Delvey and Mangione. McFarland is nary exception, helium said.

"We look astatine them similar they're iconic, like, ‘Oh what’s she wearing to court?' And … astatine a definite point, you're conscionable much obsessed with them arsenic this communicative that you've built alternatively than who they really are. … If you met Billy, you wouldn't beryllium impressed," Aks said.

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Rows of tents astatine Fyre Festival successful 2017. (Stephanie Farr)

Aks added that the public, particularly the American public, does not speech astir the occurrence stories of millionaire and billionaire concern moguls successful the aforesaid mode the nationalist discusses scammers and "money grubbers," peculiarly connected societal media.

"We glorify the bad, the scammy, the evil, and we look astatine those radical arsenic heroes."

"It utilized to beryllium … this inspirational way you would instrumentality successful your vocation to benignant of determination up a ladder oregon gain a surviving and bargain a location oregon something. Now, we vilify those people, and we glorify the bad, the scammy, the evil, and we look astatine those radical arsenic heroes," Aks said. 

"Like benignant icons oregon state fighters oregon immoderate different imaginary rubric you privation to delegate them. And I deliberation … it's precise worrying arsenic a societal shift. … Why are we doing this?"

The erstwhile societal media decorator for Fyre Festival says societal media is fueling the idolization of atrocious actors and scammers, including Fyre Festival creator Billy McFarland (center), notorious scam socialite Anna Delvey Sorokin and UnitedHealthcare CEO execution fishy Luigi Mangione. (Alexi Rosenfeld; Theo Wargo;  Curtis Means)

Aks added that America has built up the thought "that you person to neglect large to triumph big, oregon you person effort large to succeed."

"[I]t's a precise worrying societal shift."

"And they're astir benignant of similar this never-ending bid wreck. … It's what fuels the internet," helium said. "That's wherefore radical attraction astir this Luigi Mangione guy. In what beingness are we surviving successful that this is simply a applicable communicative to glorify these radical arsenic the representation of success? And … there'll beryllium a 1000 more. And it's genuinely an American story."

A pistillate carries a poster with an representation of Luigi Mangione arsenic radical clasp up signs during a rally successful New York City April 19, 2024.  (Kena Betancur/AFP)

Fake German heiress Anna Sorokin is led distant aft being sentenced successful Manhattan Supreme Court May 9, 2019, aft her condemnation connected aggregate counts of expansive larceny and theft of services. (Timothy A. Clary/AFP)

Aks said helium was excited astir the Fyre Festival task successful 2017 due to the fact that helium had a inheritance moving successful the euphony manufacture and was passionate astir euphony festivals. The lawsuit and McFarland promised attendees who paid thousands for tickets a luxurious euphony festival acceptable successful the Bahamas but delivered a glorified campsite connected the land instead.

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There was "writing connected the wall" earlier the festival began that should person indicated the lawsuit would beryllium a disaster, from recognition cards bouncing to Fyre Festival's partners being near retired of the loop connected logistical planning, Aks said.

Oren Aks said it "hit him" that Fyre Festival was a nonaccomplishment successful 2017 erstwhile helium arrived successful the Bahamas and saw rows of FEMA-style tents wherever guests were promised luxury villas. (Stephanie Farr)

He recalled the infinitesimal helium knew things were going south.

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"When we arrived, the constituent wherever it truly deed maine was really … going implicit this elevation and benignant of descending into the vale wherever the formation area, wherever the festival was taking place, and seeing the tents and the existent media halfway signifier country and … thing was there," helium said. 

"In my brain, the logistics didn't enactment out, but I conscionable assumed that's conscionable not my territory. I'm the graphic designer. I'm definite they've got similar an designer oregon … idiosyncratic dealing with that. But past I saw the FEMA oregon the U.N.-style tents, and that was the infinitesimal it each hit."

Fyre Festival attendees exit a tiny level successful the Bahamas successful 2017. (Stephanie Farr)

After the 2017 Fyre Festival's failure, it went viral connected societal media erstwhile Hulu and Netflix published documentaries astir the failed formation bash, making the #fyrefraud hashtag and a photograph of the strewn-together sandwiches served astatine the festival spell viral astatine the time.

The festival reached a colony with 277 summons holders successful 2021, erstwhile it was ordered to wage each recipient an grant of $7,220.

A photograph of sandwiches served astatine Fyre Festival successful 2017. (Stephanie Farr)

Fyre Festival 2 has since been postponed, and McFarland announced this week helium is selling the Fyre brand.

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"We person decided the champion mode to execute our goals is to merchantability the FYRE Festival brand, including its trademarks, IP, integer assets, media reach, and taste superior – to an relation that tin afloat recognize its vision," McFarland wrote successful a connection posted to Instagram Wednesday.

McFarland said the Fyre marque "deserves a squad with the scale, experience, and infrastructure to recognize its afloat potential."