YouTube relaxes moderation rules to allow more controversial content

[midian182]

Why it matters: Don't be surprised to see more controversial videos on YouTube. Much like Meta, the platform has relaxed its moderation policies, allowing content that violates the usual rules if it is deemed to be in the "public interest."

The Google-owned site has provided moderators with new guidelines and training on how to deal with inflammatory content that breaks YouTube's code of conduct, writes The New York Times.

Reviewers have been told not to remove anything considered to be in the public interest. This includes discussions of elections, ideologies, movements, race, gender, sexuality, abortion, immigration, and censorship.

Moderators were previously told to remove videos if one-quarter or more of the content violated YouTube policies. Now, that limit has been increased to half. Reviewers have also been told to consult with their managers if the videos are borderline, rather than removing them outright.

YouTube said the change expanded on one it made before the 2024 US election that allowed policy-violating content from political candidates to remain under its educational, documentary, scientific, and artistic content exemption.

The NYT included examples of videos that are now allowed following the policy change. One of these is titled 'RFK Jr. Delivers SLEDGEHAMMER Blows to Gene-Altering JABS.' It would have previously been disallowed as it fell under medical misinformation, but it is now allowed as the public interest "outweighs the harm risk."

YouTube claims that the change will only apply to a small fraction of videos that it hosts, and that its introduction ensures that important content remains available. The company gave an example of the exceptions preventing "an hours-long news podcast from being removed for showing one short clip of violence."

 

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A post shared by Mark Zuckerberg (@zuck)

Many tech giants have loosened their content moderation policies since Trump won the election. The highest-profile example has been Facebook and Instagram parent Meta. CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in January that accidentally censoring just one percent of posts affects millions of people, and that there have been too many mistakes and "too much censorship."

Zuckerberg added that Meta would "simplify" its content policies, removing restrictions on topics such as immigration and gender that "are just out of touch with mainstream discourse."

The CEO also announced that Meta would replace third-party fact checkers with community notes, which have gained popularity on X. The former Twitter site slackened its moderation policies after Elon Musk took over.

In related news this week, YouTube has just shut down a loophole that allowed apps and browsers such as Firefox to circumvent its anti-ad-blocking protections.

Permalink to story:

YouTube relaxes moderation rules to allow more controversial content

 

[redgarl]

Google value your freedom of speech... tell that to Louis Rossman...

 

[Burty117]

Does that mean we might see music video parody's again?

Some of those were great but they all died off in 2017/2018 and from what I heard, it was because YouTube was making it impossible to make money on those video's.

 

[PXAbstraction]

Yeah, funny that. Call a criminal a criminal with a ton of receipts and the criminal submits a complaint and YouTube sides with them. As usual, the new guidelines are still subject to hidden forces.

 

[opckieran]

“Reviewers have been told not to remove anything considered to be in the public interest. This includes discussions of elections, ideologies, movements, race, gender, sexuality, abortion, immigration, and censorship.”

Let’s be real here, videos on these topics are already freely distributed, at length, on WokeTube, without repercussions (including full ad revenue), provided you parrot Google’s sanctioned opinions…


Will be interesting to see who returns to the platform.

 

[yRaz]

I bet a video talking about this will get demonitized

 

[m4a4]

Yeahhh... unless they overhaul their moderation team, I don't expect much difference. The correct opinions will still be left alone for the most part.

Last I checked, they don't even allow a mouse trap channel to imply a mouse died (humanely) anymore. Talk about over-sensitivity, typical of one side...

 

[Squid Surprise]

Let the hate continue!

 

[opckieran]

Yeahhh... unless they overhaul their moderation team, I don't expect much difference. The correct opinions will still be left alone for the most part.

Last I checked, they don't even allow a mouse trap channel to imply a mouse died (humanely) anymore. Talk about over-sensitivity, typical of one side...

Yup. You have to use fake words like Graped, Cornography, Unalived, etc.

Shoutouts to Mousetrap Mondays btw!

 

[VaRmeNsI]

The left can only thrive in a censored environment.

 

[pnntmp]

The horrible woke censorship should not be merely relaxed, it should not exist in any shape or form.

 

[mgwerner]

Yeah, no. Many of the good gun YT channels have moved shop to other providers. YT still has a near-monopoly, but their policies have sown the seeds of their eventual demise.

 

[magoid]

Relax moderation hum? I just got a comment deleted here in Techspot, because I said someone on the comments had control issues...

 

[hahahanoobs]

Companies don't care about free speech, your kid, your grandma, or that you beat cancer.
They care about money, and free speech is profitable more now than ever.

Before this it was DEI until that wasn't profitable anymore.
Before that it was LGBT.
Before that....

 

[Karlos95]

Relax moderation hum? I just got a comment deleted here in Techspot, because I said someone on the comments had control issues...

They have DEI/Woke ideologies here also. Merely questioning someone on what they believe to be true with facts can get your comment deleted.

 

[bandit8623]

Companies don't care about free speech, your kid, your grandma, or that you beat cancer.
They care about money, and free speech is profitable more now than ever.

Before this it was DEI until that wasn't profitable anymore.
Before that it was LGBT.
Before that....

so all you can do is vote people in that keep our voice heard. and in this case all voices. some woke person even today can rant all they want in platforms and not have any issues. just like before. only change now is others can say there opposition... debates are a lost art

 

[Aus spot]

Relax moderation hum? I just got a comment deleted here in Techspot, because I said someone on the comments had control issues...

Attack the issue not the person. The moderator was correct to delete a personal attack.

 

[magoid]

Attack the issue not the person. The moderator was correct to delete a personal attack.

Saying a person have a psychological problem is a attack now? Talk about not being able to handle criticism.

 

[Squid Surprise]

Saying a person have a psychological problem is a attack now? Talk about not being able to handle criticism.

Psshaw, you'd have to be a complete r3t4rd to think that's a personal attack

 

[FryEmLikeBacon]

The left can only thrive in a censored environment.

As a leftist, I for one welcome this loosening of restrictions. Sure, you get to say the N word now, big woopdeedoo.

But we on the left get to say how we really feel about those who control every aspect of this planet with their iron fist now. It's guillotine time baby, and the rich are gonna get eaten at long last.

Freedom of speech baby! Fry. Them. Like. BACON!

 

[VaRmeNsI]

As a leftist, I for one welcome this loosening of restrictions. Sure, you get to say the N word now, big woopdeedoo.

But we on the left get to say how we really feel about those who control every aspect of this planet with their iron fist now. It's guillotine time baby, and the rich are gonna get eaten at long last.

Freedom of speech baby! Fry. Them. Like. BACON!

Inciting violence generally isn't covered by free speech protections.

 

[Aus spot]

Psshaw, you'd have to be a complete r3t4rd to think that's a personal attack

See hiding words is the act of a cowardly individual.

Calling someone “retarded” when you are not professionally qualified to do so, and/or previously diagnosed with the condition that you know about, and certainly if you have never met the person is clearly a personal attack on said person.

I’d liken the behaviour to a filthy rioter who hides their face trying not to get caught. One throwing stones and hiding just like a coward.

 

[toooooot]

Does it mean that criticism against the deities of progressives won't make the comments disappear 30 seconds after posting? Youtube might be a platform that has much stricter moderation than the rest big platforms. The only reason nobody is talking about it is that the vast majority of users simply do not know it exists. You post a comment and forget about it. Youtube does not. Millions of comments vanish. Not random comments, but those that disrespect the religion of woke.
In a way, what youtube is doing is many times worse than what old Twitter did, for example. Because the platforms like old Twitter were honest about their principles: "this and this will get you punished and we don't care if it is fair or not."
Youtube however pretends that it will allow fair share of topics as long as they're not openly rude. But the catch is, it does not. It is very serious about its holy cows. It cherishes them like the holiest of the holy.

 

[candle86]

As a leftist, I for one welcome this loosening of restrictions. Sure, you get to say the N word now, big woopdeedoo.

But we on the left get to say how we really feel about those who control every aspect of this planet with their iron fist now. It's guillotine time baby, and the rich are gonna get eaten at long last.

Freedom of speech baby! Fry. Them. Like. BACON!

good luck, first you'd have to not be scared of guns

 

[Megalomaniac]

Imagine getting a copyright strike from a video you posted back in 2022? Youtube is dead. Their algorithm and notifications system has killed honest youtubber's numbers. In order to "win" you have no choice but to make low-quality SHORTS. They're mostly to keep the brain-dead ADHD Tik Tok audience satiated. I'm watching small channels blow up because of the Shorts while larger channels get left behind. It's ridiculous and I hope Google/Youtube gets sued and broken up as they have unfair, monopolistic tactics to force internet searches in their direction. Youtube's quality of content has declined significantly since 2020.