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YouTube Removes Comments on Videos Featuring Kids

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YouTube Removes Comments on Videos Featuring Kids

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(Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)

YouTube is killing the comment sections on most videos featuring minors.

In response to pedophiles abusing the function, the Google-owned service has been disabling comments on tens of millions of videos featuring children, and will be “broadening the action” in the coming months, YouTube said in a Thursday blog post(Opens in a new window).

YouTube is specifically targeting videos that feature minors who could be “at risk of attracting predatory behavior.” It’s making exceptions for a “small number of creators” on the platform, who agreed to police their comment sections.

“These channels will be required to actively moderate their comments, beyond just using our moderation tools, and demonstrate a low risk of predatory behavior,” YouTube said. “We will work with them directly and our goal is to grow this number over time as our ability to catch violative comments continues to improve.”

The change will take place over several months, a YouTube spokesperson told PCMag in an email. “We understand that comments are an important way creators build and connect with their audiences, [but] we also know that this is the right thing to do to protect the YouTube community,” the spokesperson added.

The overhaul comes as several major brands—including Nestle, Epic Games, Disney and AT&T—suspended advertising on YouTube. They bailed on the platform after a YouTube creator named Matt Watson posted a video(Opens in a new window) (below) documenting how pedophiles can use the comment sections on videos featuring minors to exchange contact details and links to child porn. The same comment sections could also feature time stamps of when the minor in the video exposed their bare legs or backs.

To crack down on the problem, YouTube said on Thursday that it added a new computer algorithm that can better “identify and remove predatory comments” on the platform. “We accelerated its launch and now have a new comments classifier in place that is more sweeping in scope, and will detect and remove 2X more individual comments,” it said.

YouTube also terminated certain YouTube channels that were attempting to endanger children. One, known as “FilthyFrankClips,” appeared to be associated with a video instructing viewers how to commit suicide. The video was later found spliced(Opens in a new window) into a cartoon for kids on YouTube.

YouTube acknowledged the upcoming changes will be dramatic, especially for video creators who specialize in content aimed at children and parents. But it appears the Google-owned service had to take action to regain the trust of advertisers.

Videos that include minors and are at risk of predatory comments may receive limited or no ads,” says(Opens in a new window) a YouTube support document about the changes. “A small number of channels that we have identified as having a high level of risk for predatory comments will not be able to re-enable comments, even with moderation,” the same document adds.

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A larger question is whether YouTube’s algorithms can successfully distinguish between videos featuring minors and those that show only adults. Some users on the internet are doubtful (just look at Tumblr), and say YouTube is unfairly punishing(Opens in a new window) video uploaders who’ve actively moderated their comment sections.

The comment section crack down has already ensnared the videos of YouTube creator, Matthew Tye, who posts about his life in China. “They have not only disabled the comment section on one of my videos, but all of my videos,” he said in a YouTube posting(Opens in a new window). Although he has two daughters, Tye said they rarely appear in his YouTube videos, which he’s previously been able to monetize through ads.

“When YouTube disables a comment section on a video, it makes it less likely for that video to be shared,” he said, describing the impact of the change. “You are less apt to be put on the recommended videos.”

So far, YouTube hasn’t commented on how it’ll address the accidental comment section take downs.

Editor’s Note: This story has been updated with information on Matthew Tye’s YouTube channel.



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