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YouTube to Remove Thousands of Videos Pushing Extreme Views

nytimes.com

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Re: YouTube to Remove Thousands of Videos Pushing Extreme Views

#311

Post by ssully »

Romanulus wrote: post #197
chrisjc wrote: post #118

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> White supremacy is a much bigger deal with a worse tail risk than Islamic extremism. Wait... you're saying that white supremacy is worse than islamic extremism? Is you opinion perhaps a manifestation of your perspective? I'm sure there are some people in Syria, Afghanistan, etc... that would disagree with you. BTW, I'm not saying one is worse than the other, just that they are both bad, both a problem, and both sho…

I'd be willing to say Islamic extremism is worse than white supremacy.

I'd be willing to say both are terrible and have zero value in our society. I think it would be a great move if Youtube put a policy in place that banned content that pushed content that pushed extreme views (including Islamic extremism and white supremacy).

Re: YouTube to Remove Thousands of Videos Pushing Extreme Views

#312

Post by IfOnlyYouKnew »

chrisjc wrote: post #237
gaogao wrote: post #194

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you recognize that racial supremacy goes hand-in-hand with the imperialistic expansionism of Nazi Germany and Japan, I think it's fairly apt descriptor of one of the major causes of the war.

bait and switch

Are you seriously denying that Nazis were motivated by ideology of racial supremacy?

Re: YouTube to Remove Thousands of Videos Pushing Extreme Views

#313

Post by icxa »

dageshi wrote: post #309
ravenstine wrote: post #107

I'm starting to think that comment sections on news sites are a really bad idea. At first I thought NPR and the like were cowards for removing theirs. It's bad enough that NYT can be pretty biased on its own, but the comment sections are always full of low-tier thinking that just push whatever narrative is currently in the Overton window. What I find distressing is how people remark that a telecom and advertising gia…

Is a privately owned museum a "public square"? Or a sports stadium owned by a private company? Or a Cinema? Or a threatre? No, neither is youtube. It's a place the public visit not a piece of public infrastructure. Repeating "public square" over and over again does not make it so.

Then why does it get the legal benefits of being a "neutral platform"?

Re: YouTube to Remove Thousands of Videos Pushing Extreme Views

#314

Post by idlewords »

baud147258 wrote: post #161
vowelless wrote: post #126

Earlier quoted context omitted.

White supremacy was the cause for the worst wars of the 20th century. A white nationalist uprising in Europe would be deadlier (again) than Islamic extremists taking over most middle eastern nations due to the resources that will be available to them.

> White supremacy was the cause for the worst wars of the 20th century Which ones? Both WW were caused by political disputes and nationalist views

The secret lizard wars The Man won't teach you about in school. Check out my YouTube channel.

Re: YouTube to Remove Thousands of Videos Pushing Extreme Views

#316

Post by [deleted] »

la_barba wrote: post #206
FabHK wrote: post #148

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It might not be the job of an entertainment platform to challenge views, per se, but you can argue that it is its job to make sure that their profit-maximising algorithms do not devolve into steering users down a rabbit hole of ever more extreme and dishonest content within an information bubble. Or, at any rate, if that's the outcome, then it might be time to regulate said platform.

If I choose to only buy magazines with racist/extreme/violent content, its on me. But if I watch it on YouTube its on them? I don't understand how using the magic word "algorithm" immediately implies that there is zero volition from the part of the user. Is it scary to think that people actually want to watch these videos, even if the algorithm didn't exist?

[deleted]

Re: YouTube to Remove Thousands of Videos Pushing Extreme Views

#317

Post by CodiePetersen »

ravenstine wrote: post #107

I'm starting to think that comment sections on news sites are a really bad idea. At first I thought NPR and the like were cowards for removing theirs. It's bad enough that NYT can be pretty biased on its own, but the comment sections are always full of low-tier thinking that just push whatever narrative is currently in the Overton window. What I find distressing is how people remark that a telecom and advertising gia…

Although any hateful speech is terrible of course, I think censoring like this is a bad idea. Like other conversations about freedom of speech on HN it will eventually lead to talking about banning non hateful but extreme ideas like flat earth and anti vax. While ridiculous as they are, I think it would be equally ridiculous to ban them. What's the line you draw when you decide what gets to be promoted. Maybe certain religious ideas or ideas criticising religions?

I do disagree with your private business comment though. It is a private business and they can do what they want to an extent. You don't tell a news paper who they have to let write articles. But I think the problem is that youtube is so large and the service so imporant that it might as well be a government deciding rights. It's not just youtube there are a lot of tech giants that powerful. I think when it's obvious they are that powerful and important it's time to break them up. I mean hell the bread company my step dad works at even had to go through a process to see if they would be too big with a recent purchase. But yet tech companies have been getting away with this sort of unchecked growth. They are global powers with dwindling competition. Break them up. Reintroduce competition.

Re: YouTube to Remove Thousands of Videos Pushing Extreme Views

#318

Post by HBKXNCUO »

dageshi wrote: post #309
ravenstine wrote: post #107

I'm starting to think that comment sections on news sites are a really bad idea. At first I thought NPR and the like were cowards for removing theirs. It's bad enough that NYT can be pretty biased on its own, but the comment sections are always full of low-tier thinking that just push whatever narrative is currently in the Overton window. What I find distressing is how people remark that a telecom and advertising gia…

Is a privately owned museum a "public square"? Or a sports stadium owned by a private company? Or a Cinema? Or a threatre? No, neither is youtube. It's a place the public visit not a piece of public infrastructure. Repeating "public square" over and over again does not make it so.

Do any of those places host a substantial portion of the public political debate? If any of those places banned people, would that significantly reduce the ability of those people to meaningfully participated in the public political debate?

Re: YouTube to Remove Thousands of Videos Pushing Extreme Views

#319

Post by wry_discontent »

umvi wrote: post #278
patagonia wrote: post #33

Will YouTube also remove their algos that send people down rabbit holes of “extreme views” and encapsulate individuals in information bubbles that seem to validate and fail to challenge their views? The platform should shoulder as much or more blame than the content in this case. Free speech man. This is not ok.

> and fail to challenge their views So you are saying YouTube should actively recommend people stuff they disagree with? Like, if you are religious it should recommend atheist and skeptic videos? And if you are vegetarian it should recommend meat smoking videos? I'm pretty should people would hate that

I think you know what's being discussed.

YouTube should actively try to prevent people from being drawn into racist rabbit holes. If your rabbit hole ends with "and that's why we should exterminate Jews", probably not a good idea to encourage viewers down that path.

Re: YouTube to Remove Thousands of Videos Pushing Extreme Views

#320

Post by toomuchtodo »

v7p1Qbt1im wrote: post #181
toomuchtodo wrote: post #56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I fully and without compromise support the right to free speech of all citizens, including "nazis" or whatever the overloaded term people are using these days. Rights aren't removed from citizens because you don't like their politics or beliefs. If you cheer when someone is deplatformed, remember that it is a short walk for your own ideas and beliefs to be deplatformed when the winds change.

Tolerance of intolerance may lead to the loss of tolerance. The NSDAP propaganda machine, for example specifically targeted this line of thinking.

That's an argument for active participation in the political process and an engaged electorate, not censorship. To default to the support of censorship of what you disagree with is simply laziness (and antithetical to the fundamental principals of a democratic society). If your government and society can't withstand the free expression and discussion of unpleasant ideas, you have problems with the current implementation of government and society (and the unpleasantness isn't at fault). Masking the symptom doesn't solve the root cause.

To your example, you put misplaced blame on a propaganda machine, not uneducated, unengaged, emotional citizen voters.

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