Open Letter To YouTube.

Open letter to YouTube.

YouTube. For all the years of entertainment you’ve made possible, and all the opportunities you’ve presented to so many people, I’m grateful. You’ve provided so much for so many, creators and consumers alike. I owe my job, and in a broad sense my general life to your platform. It takes a LOT to tear down that sort of built up trust. But you’ve managed to do it.

The constant changes to “the algorithm”, fair enough. The “sudden random bugs” that didn’t send out content to all the subscribers. Fine. Even when you, for some godforsaken reason decided that “Subscribe” was no longer enough, but you felt the need to add a bell, and yet a secondary step to go from “most content” to “all content”. Whatever. One would think a chronological feed of whatever recent post has been made by a channel would suffice. But you’re not alone in being guilty of this, every social network is doing it, why not you too. When the “adpocalypse” hit, and so many channels suffered, some even being unable to sustain, still most seemed to rally and say it’s not YouTube’s fault, YouTube is not the bad guy, there are only some bad creators, bad users. They’re doing their best.

I’m no longer convinced of this. When your system automatically flags the majority of content uploaded as “non-advertiser friendly” without having a clue what the video actually is. When you offer no way whatsoever, of whitelisting a channel with good track record. When you manipulate feeds and recommended videos, and prioritize content that will make you money, over content that actually appeals to the user. When you’re SO clearly granting preferential treatement to those who can “make you look good” rather than being good. When a “top tier” creator on your platform can make a multimilliondollar-living out of being as disrespectful and morally despicable as (sometimes) legally possible. When a “top tier” creator on your platform can broadcast a victim of suicide to millions of underage people… and you do nothing.

Not a single action has been taken, the best you could do was to claim your “hearts went out to the family”. Why not add in “one like equals one prayer” and “every retweet saves a child” while you’re at it. You don’t care, this much is clear. You don’t care, as long as you’re making money. You are a business, I know, but you CAN do both. You so badly want to be TV, that you never stopped to consider why so many people have almost stopped watching TV all together, in favour of you. Count your blessings, that you have no competition, I for one would jump ship in a heartbeat. If I’m wrong, tell me. Tell us, something. Anything. Ever.

Hypocritical, bureaucratic, orwellian… Tube.