5 ms·

Here's an excellent video breaking down with extremely compelling data how the "trending" tab is very heavily manipulated in favor of mainstream media sources:

Here's an excellent video breaking down with extremely compelling data how the "trending" tab is very heavily manipulated in favor of mainstream media sources: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fDqBeXJ8Zx8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fDqBeXJ8Zx8 What's interesting is that extreme bias in the US is not seen in Canada. Though I'm not sure it's stated in the video, I think that Youtube has been propping up MSM sources so that they can make themselves seem more relevant in the eyes of the MSM. They're doing this so that they can partner with the MSM and expand their YoutubeTV service. They desperately want some sort of service model to make money, and they're willing to destroy the goodwill of the community to achieve it.

mtgx 7y ago
It's been obvious for years Google is moving in this direction of favoring "big brands". I mean I think they even said it out-loud about a decade ago when they made a Google search algorithm update. Then the whole thing with AMP and them "partnering with big publishers" to show you carousels of big brand content at the top of the search page also happened. And the same thing with YouTube happened the moment Google decided to turn it into "web TV", also many years ago. There's also the trend of top of all these other trends of Google trying to do everything by itself, which the European Commission noticed a while ago and started investigating it in multiple antitrust lawsuits. But I fear even several multi-billion dollar fines won't be enough to actually stop Google from going down this path even more.
- anon1m0us 7y ago
  Google has just become "The Internet" on the internet. Youtube is what the internet was. Tumblr is what the internet was. Facebook is what the internet was. All those together are "The new internet" which is really just the new main stream media. We grew up with ABC, NBC, CBS and PBS. Now it's facebook, twitter, and youtube. Those new internet bootstrapped itself off the hopes and dreams of individual content creators and now that they are big enough, they are disregarding the individual and moving back toward the "mass brain" corporations. 20 years ago, the internet was the dream that now individuals could create and have as much visibility as big corporations. It was liberating. It was democratizing! But the internet has gone the way of the airwaves and sadly, the content has too -- for the most part. Yes, there's still good content out there, but if ABC, CBS, and NBC won't show it to you, you have to work harder as a consumer to find it. Like at the library or from your friends and family, or idk, ddg? We need a search engine that refuses to index any content with Google Ads on it. Or any ad network on it. We need to actively disengage from anything associated with Google.
anon1m0us 7y ago
It's hypocritical of YT to be selling the dream of ad based revenue for their content creators when YT themselves are trying to get away from it. If YT is moving to subscription services, shouldn't the content creators be thinking like that too? It's also ... unright to be moving toward MSM when they are supposed to be the people's way to share video content. YT is becoming NBC or HBO, but without all the regulations those MSM distributors have to follow. I want real closed-captions on all my content for example, so I can listen to my own music during the video instead of whatever music the content creator preferred -- like I can with TV. Of course YT would say, "There's too much content, we can't be expected to CC everything."
untog 7y ago
I think the reality is a lot less interesting than the conspiracy theory: mainstream media sources are far less likely to post dangerous, controversial or radicalising content. Given that YouTube has historically had a problem with that (and still does in countries like Brazil[1]) it's not so much a suspicious response as a very predictable business response. [1] https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/11/world/americas/youtube-brazil.html https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/11/world/americas/youtube-br...

mtgx 7y ago

It's been obvious for years Google is moving in this direction of favoring "big brands". I mean I think they even said it out-loud about a decade ago when they made a Google search algorithm update. Then the whole thing with AMP and them "partnering with big publishers" to show you carousels of big brand content at the top of the search page also happened. And the same thing with YouTube happened the moment Google decided to turn it into "web TV", also many years ago. There's also the trend of top of all these other trends of Google trying to do everything by itself, which the European Commission noticed a while ago and started investigating it in multiple antitrust lawsuits. But I fear even several multi-billion dollar fines won't be enough to actually stop Google from going down this path even more.

anon1m0us 7y ago
Google has just become "The Internet" on the internet. Youtube is what the internet was. Tumblr is what the internet was. Facebook is what the internet was. All those together are "The new internet" which is really just the new main stream media. We grew up with ABC, NBC, CBS and PBS. Now it's facebook, twitter, and youtube. Those new internet bootstrapped itself off the hopes and dreams of individual content creators and now that they are big enough, they are disregarding the individual and moving back toward the "mass brain" corporations. 20 years ago, the internet was the dream that now individuals could create and have as much visibility as big corporations. It was liberating. It was democratizing! But the internet has gone the way of the airwaves and sadly, the content has too -- for the most part. Yes, there's still good content out there, but if ABC, CBS, and NBC won't show it to you, you have to work harder as a consumer to find it. Like at the library or from your friends and family, or idk, ddg? We need a search engine that refuses to index any content with Google Ads on it. Or any ad network on it. We need to actively disengage from anything associated with Google.

anon1m0us 7y ago

It's hypocritical of YT to be selling the dream of ad based revenue for their content creators when YT themselves are trying to get away from it. If YT is moving to subscription services, shouldn't the content creators be thinking like that too? It's also ... unright to be moving toward MSM when they are supposed to be the people's way to share video content. YT is becoming NBC or HBO, but without all the regulations those MSM distributors have to follow. I want real closed-captions on all my content for example, so I can listen to my own music during the video instead of whatever music the content creator preferred -- like I can with TV. Of course YT would say, "There's too much content, we can't be expected to CC everything."

untog 7y ago

I think the reality is a lot less interesting than the conspiracy theory: mainstream media sources are far less likely to post dangerous, controversial or radicalising content. Given that YouTube has historically had a problem with that (and still does in countries like Brazil[1]) it's not so much a suspicious response as a very predictable business response. [1] https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/11/world/americas/youtube-brazil.html https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/11/world/americas/youtube-br...