Online star Hawk Tuah girl faces crypto coin criticism

Haliey Welch, known mostly as the creator behind the viral "Hawk Tuah" meme, is facing criticism after her newly launched cryptocurrency nosedived in value.

Her "Hawk" digital coin hit a $490m market cap shortly after it launched on Wednesday, before suddenly losing more than 95% of its value within hours.

This has led some, including YouTube cryptocurrency investigator Coffeezilla, to accuse Ms Welch of scamming investors with a "pump and dump" - where the people behind a coin hype up its price before launch, then sell it for profit.

She has denied allegations that her team sold any of the tokens they owned.

Known online as the "Hawk Tuah girl", Ms Welch went viral after speaking the onomatopoeia "hawk tuah" - imitating the sound of someone spitting - during an interview in June.

It made the 22-year-old, from Belfast, Tennessee, an overnight internet sensation.

She amassed hundreds of thousands of followers across various social platforms and launched her own merchandise and a podcast called "Talk Tuah".

Her manager told the Hollywood Reporter in July that she was unique in not having sought out internet fame, having been off social media for mental health reasons for several months before appearing in the now-viral "Hawk Tuah" video.

Rolling Stone has likened her funny, small-town personality to a "Gen Z Dolly Parton".

Ms Welch told outlet TMZ ahead of Hawk's launch on Wednesday that she launched it to tackle "a bunch of imposters" pretending to be her and selling their own coins.

"It's a really good way to get all my fans and community to interact and come together," she said.