The SEC’s attempt to educate the public about the potential pitfalls of investing in so-called “meme stocks” has infuriated some Redditors this week – with “WallStreetBets” users and other tips grumbling that the agency was hypocritical and out of touch.

The SEC’s 30-second video titled “Meme Stocks” features a comedy skit based on a fictional game show. A contestant attempts to invest in meme stocks, only to have their money disappear and a pie hit them in the face.

Another candidate says he is “going to research first” before investing, prompting the first candidate to ask, “Can we do some research? »

The video, which has been viewed nearly 200,000 times on YouTube, sparked a series of Reddit posts on WallStreetBets, a popular advice for retail investors, and SuperStonk, a site focused on one of the original ‘meme stocks’. , GameStop.

“Whoever made this video or decided to post deserves to be fired. The thought process behind this is out of this world in their thinking, if not blatantly exposing government corruption,” wrote WallStreetBets user Thorbeans in an article titled “A Message to the SEC.”

“The entire market is a meme stock, labeling small to mid cap stocks as meme stocks is in itself manipulation by fomentation,” the post added.

“SEC video makes me want to double down on MEME stonks,” wrote another WallStreetBets Reddit board user.

A third wrote: “There is literally no way this BS video will result in LESS memestock [sic] trade. It will probably result more just to upset them.

The SEC’s “Meme Stocks” video was the latest entry in its “Investomania” video series. The agency said the public service video series uses a “game show concept to educate investors in a fun way that investing is not a game and that they should exercise due diligence when ‘they make investment decisions’.

Previous editions of the series include videos on cryptocurrencies, margin investing, and one titled “easy money.”

The SEC did not immediately return a request for comment on the Reddit threads.

Barron’s was the first to report the backlash.

Shares of memes such as GameStop and AMC have surged during the COVID-19 pandemic, but have plunged in recent days during a broader market downturn.

A recent analysis from Morgan Stanley found that retail traders have, on average, lost all of their gains made since 2020. Another Goldman Sachs study showed nearly identical results.

Cryptocurrencies have come under similar pressure, falling from pandemic-era highs and depleting the reserves of some retail investors who have bet on digital tokens.