YouTube Cracks Down on 'Harmful and Dangerous' Challenges and Pranks (polygon.com)
YouTube has set stricter guidelines for "harmful and dangerous" prank and challenge videos. From a report: "We've always had policies to make sure what's funny doesn't cross the line into also being harmful or dangerous," reads the YouTube guidelines. "Our Community Guidelines prohibit content that encourages dangerous activities that are likely to result in serious harm, and today clarifying what this means for dangerous challenges and pranks." YouTube's guidelines now further detail which of these popular videos push the line, including challenges such as the Tide Pod challenge and the Fire challenge -- anything "that can cause death and/or have caused death in some instances."
As for pranks, videos that make the victims believe they're in serious danger or cause severe emotional distress to children (further clarified with examples like faking the death of a parent) are no longer acceptable on the platform. Creators who host these types of videos on their channels will receive a grace period of two months to clean up their channel.
As for pranks, videos that make the victims believe they're in serious danger or cause severe emotional distress to children (further clarified with examples like faking the death of a parent) are no longer acceptable on the platform. Creators who host these types of videos on their channels will receive a grace period of two months to clean up their channel.
You and I have different opinions of what constitutes dangerous activity
While the whole thing seems like a nanny state situation... isn't two months grace period far too long? In two months viral videos have spread far and wide and earned mountains of advertising revenue for the content creator. In two months the peak viewing audience has pretty much moved on to the next big thing... like an egg.
They can publish all the "feel good" guidelines they want. Until they can effectively and promptly enforce consistent guidelines, it's all marketing drivel aimed at keeping the lawyers and regulators at bay.
Will the general Population accept it. Google is great it. Thats why China wants them to build their search engine.
[($)]
But nazis, antivaxxers, etc can keep posting like normal
Now we can take that awful gillete prank.
They can publish all the "feel good" guidelines they want. Until they can effectively and promptly enforce consistent guidelines, it's all marketing drivel aimed at keeping the lawyers and regulators at bay.
Exactly this. They have all sorts of rules and guidelines but we all know that unless the PR $#!+ hits the fan they don't enforce them regularly. They are in the business of selling ads and as long as they are not getting raked over the coals for something, they don't have the resources to police everybody. Just keeping porn at bay is a full time job, even though there are other, more popular options for that stuff.
"File to fit, pound to insert, paint to match" - Aircraft Maintenance 101
It's all about pushing the current creators out and turning Youtube into Cable TV Jr.
But what about the Darwin Awards?
Seriously YouTube, what are you thinking?
No more Tide Pod challenges, trying to swallow cinnamons, or driving blindfolded.
This makes absolutely no sense.
I think it's good to filter the stupid from society.
Content providers are always scared shitless that the idiots of the world are all going to do something stupid, just because "I saw it on TV". In 1993 Beavis and Butthead got blamed because some 5 year old kid started his house on fire.
https://www.nytimes.com/1993/10/10/us/cartoon-on-mtv-blamed-for-fire.html
So MTV banned the two idiots from saying Fire! Fire!
(later it turned out the family didn't even have a cable subscription).
Mike Judge had a pretty clever response, with an episode when B&B go out in a rainstorm and flying a kite after seeing a PBS show about how Benjamin Franklin did that.
It's nothing new, and we haven't really learned anything in 26 years.
WOOOOORRRLLLD STAAAAAAARRRR!
Aw, you say that dismissively. Your customers wanted signaling, and you achieved that. Mission complete. It's not like actually being effectual matters, just advertisers, who were getting I Want To See The Manager in their inboxes.
Part of me wanted to celebrate a decrease in garbage on Youtube, but then again, it's about as impressive as removing "All 1% milk cartons" from a landfill.
I'm waiting for the day YouTube starts banning motorcycle chases and the like. Someone is eventually going to make the case that watching such videos encourage dangerous behavior.
Cartoon deaths are not allowed?
That's on TV, it's already been past Standards and Practices. Youtube is concerned about the random stuff that hasn't. Jimmy isn't telling parents their parents died or telling them to eat laundry detergent. It's just stupid candy and not orwellian in the slightest.
Come get some, Nancy.
I don't know which is worse - that someone would prank a child by telling them their parent died, or that someone would watch it. This level of depravity makes me despair for the status and future of the human race.
funny political memes and one side of politics?
No blasphemy and the history of faiths/cults?
Wait for Germany, France and Spain to demand the removal of "harmful" political and historical content.
News about protests will be removed.
Domestic spying is now "Benign Information Gathering"
My video of shoving Tide pods up my butt while being blindfolded was sure to score millions of viewers!
Doesn't matter if it's been on TV. It certainly meets the criterium of severe emotional distress.
He's released from rehab within the next week.
So.. we good then? If you've solved the problem of lawyers and regulators, then you've solved the problem. It's not like it's in society's interest to censor web hosts.
"Believe me!" -- Donald Trump
I hope they keep the butt rockets. Who doesn't like a good butt rocket video?
I much prefer a padded cell where I can never be hurt than walking about in the open where I might trip and hurt myself. Just to be safe, Alphabet-sama, can I have a straight jacket also? Can never know when I'll tear my eyes out out of sheer boredom!
+1 Insightful.
How will Outrageous Acts of Science survive? Although to be honest I have always been shocked at what they have been able to find and somewhat concerned that they are in a subtle way encouraging some crazy videos.
-rd
> Nazis are leftsits though.
Wrong.
By your standard maybe, but not society's!
'anything "that can cause death and/or have caused death in some instances."'
that is basically anything, i can die eating a bowl of soup, walking down the stairs, etc.
On a long enough timeline, the survival rate for everyone drops to zero.
May it finaly happen ?? a bit overdue, where did it go anyway ...took a hollyday ?
Wow, all of this bullshit around 'virtue signalling'.
In response we have a bunch of people defending 'asshole signalling'.
OK, fine, make it public that you are and will continue to be an asshole. Fine, you're an asshole, now deal with the consequences of publicly saying you're an asshole.
Basically when I hear someone bitching about 'virtue signalling' it really is just saying "well, I'm a complete fucking asshole and proud of it".
I guess publicly being an asshole is like free speech, you're free to make it, you're not free from the consequences of it. So, go ahead, be an asshole, keep saying that people trying to encourage people to not be assholes are wrong.
In this case YouTube is trying to tamp down videos which could lead to real, actual harm of people. But you're complaining about your right to be an asshole.
Well, congratulations, you're an asshole.
So... you're saying that just saying any variation of "I am doing something good" actually makes you a much better person?
Wow. No wonder it's so popular to do! A minimum of work and I can feel like I saved the world!
(Seriously, I'd say YouTube would be doing something better if they had tried banning these kinds of videos first... but they didn't, because those videos get them $$ and the others got them worse PR than even the DEATHS OF CHILDREN in their oh-so-wise estimation.)
Wow, all of this bullshit around 'security theater'.
In this case the TSA is trying to tamp down terrorism which could lead to real, actual harm of people. But you're complaining.
There's a new idiot challenge; driving a car blindfolded AKA bird box.
https://www.reddit.com/r/elsagate
^ There's some REALLY weird content being published on youtube
It's about time something was done about this! I can only imagine how many people have died because they did some stupid stunt they saw on Youtube.
No, not my standard. Youtube's standard.