YouTube AI deletes war crimes evidence as 'extremist material'

Also see this Twitter thread: https://twitter.com/EliotHiggins/status/896358097320636416

> Ironically, by deleting years old opposition channels YouTube is doing more damage to Syrian history than ISIS could ever hope to achieve

> Also gone are the dozens of playlists of videos from Syria I created, including dozens of chemical attacks in playlists by date

> Keep in mind in many cases these are the only copies of the videos, and in some the channel owner will have died, so nothing can stop it

If you use YouTube, you are subject to the whims of that private corporation, regardless of whether it's right or wrong.

They should find a way to host the content somewhere else.

I have (had) a channel that had videos about missing people, their last sightings on CCTV etc. The parents of a missing person even used an embed video on their site of a CCTV footage. They emailed me if I still have the video because they need it.

YouTube banned the whole channel for extremist/hateful content. Probably some of the videos/titles told the AI that the footage is extreme or some sort of glorification.

I appealed on some form but don't even bother anymore.

I hope YouTube as a video platform (not streaming) gets a serious competitor.

It was folly to think that YouTube would be a safe place to document war crimes. YouTube is a distribution channel, not a preservation channel. Its ease of use certainly makes it an attractive option to upload things quickly, but anything of historical significance should have the video raws immediately turned over to a human rights organization for preservation.

An organiziation should not be free of criticism simply because it does not have an obligation to do or not do something.