Is YouTube Suppressing Conspiracy Content?
It is the second largest platform on the common web. YouTube allows users to post their content but they play favorites and cherry pick content deemed acceptable. Some conspiracy videos seem to go viral for moments, then suddenly get stuffed into the shadows of the internet.
Most people go to YouTube to watch silly videos, news, sports and whatnot. An interesting fact is, each day there are 5 billion videos which are watched upon this platform. Youtube.com is the No. 2 most popular website in both the global market and in the U.S. for 2019, even though 80 percent of YouTube views, are from outside the United States.
It seems that it was a good investment for Google as they bought YouTube back in November of 2005 for $1.65 billion dollars. Now, YouTube operates as one of Google’s subsidiaries.
With such a large platform, YouTube has since expanded its online streaming service. Over time, users can now watch live television on their electronic devices. When asked about the current situation of playing favorites.
YouTube responded by saying, no longer would they recommend content that would misinform users in harmful ways. This would include anything from phony miracle cures to claims that the earth is flat. Other historical events such as 9/11 conspiracies, are also being knocked off their platform or buried deep down so users can’t find these type of channels. YouTube mentions problematic stuff on their platform is less than one percent of the entire content of YouTube.
New York Times’ Kevin Roose observed, “many young people have absorbed a YouTube-centric worldview, including rejecting mainstream information sources in favor of platform-native creators bearing ‘secret histories’ and faux-authoritative explanations.”
With so many different choices and loads to look at, YouTube has become a search engine upon itself. People can find just about anything they desire. There are other sites like YouTube emerging, that allow complete free speech and promotion online of people’s content. One of these sites is bitchute.com
There are many people out there who are getting rich from becoming a YouTuber. Those who produce engaging content that isn’t suppressed are cashing in. PewDiePie is one of the top channels on YouTube. The Swedish personality, now has 86,521,706 subscribers currently. Felix Arvid Ulf Kjellberg is his real name and he has earned more than 50 million dollars since 2014 producing videos online. If you are out to create controversial videos, you might have to look elsewhere.
Eventually, another video platform will come along to take over everything. YouTube will still exist but will not stay as popular as it is now. You cannot keep suppressing people and their beliefs, this isn’t what the internet is about. It is about sharing information and having a voice. Social media platforms rise and fall. Google will have to be careful, if they expect to remain relevant.
(Source: The Atlantic)
