YouTube Bans Insults Based on Race, Gender, Sexual Orientation, and Other Protected Attributes

[Tsing]

YouTube has announced a new round of policy changes for curbing harassment. Going forward, content with insults based on protected attributes (e.g., race, gender expression, sexual orientation) will no longer be allowed. Comments that fall under these categories will also be removed.

We’ve continued to fine tune our systems to make sure we catch truly toxic comments, not just anything that’s negative or critical, and feedback from creators has been positive. Last week we began turning this feature on by default for YouTube’s largest channels with the site’s most active comment sections and will roll out to most channels by the end of the year.

 

[Brian_B]

I could see requiring a warning label (like the movies have the rating system), but an outright ban catches a lot of non-malicious content up in that net

i.e. Can't wait to see every rap video ever flagged with N...... Comedians flagged because of pretty much any joke they make, etc.

 

[JosiahBradley]

YouTube has been spiraling down the drain at an even more accelerated rate over the last year. I really like some of the content but that is due to the creators not the platform. Let's see what's next but this is basically the end of YouTube. Demonetizing everything left and right, filtering all adult content, straight up censorship and now bans for things they disagree with. Remember when the Internet was a flaming pile of garbage set in the wild west and somehow people got by without being triggered?

 

[Dudhunter]

I think this is a catalyst for a real YouTube competitor to rise to prominence. When regular content that airs on broadcast television is non-compliant with YouTube standards it’s easy to see the bridge too far.

 

[Uvilla]

Problem with any youtube competition is getting those ads to them redistribute some of that money.
If the competition doesn't pay for content, its going to be difficult to grow in a meaningful way, let alone peel off producers from YouTube.