Another reason to NOT by YouTube Premium, and leave my spare phone on autoplay when going out, so that youtube ad customers get to pay for supporting the biggest scam operation ever. 80% of the ads I get would never pass a sanity-check in my home country, such ads are simply illegal on our TV. But hey, the american is spreading scam ads, so lets just accept that.
YouTube is banning anti-vaccine activists and blocking all anti-vaccine content
401–410 of 1001 posts
Re: YouTube is banning anti-vaccine activists and blocking all anti-vaccine content
#402My wife is very vaccine hesitant, and every time they make a move like this to block content or take it down, it only strengthens her position. She thinks they’re taking it down because they don’t want people to know the truth. The only thing worse than bad ideas is the suppression of bad ideas. It’s tragic that we knew this at some point, but are going to have to figure it all back out again the hard way.
==She thinks they’re taking it down because they don’t want people to know the truth.== Sounds like she has already made up her mind, in which case I’m not sure it matters if the content is moderated or not. It’s possible she will find whatever reinforces the decision she’s already made. ==The only thing worse than bad ideas is the suppression of bad ideas.== This sounds good, but is it true? The bad idea exists toda…
> Take eugenics, has suppressing that idea made the belief in eugenics worse?
Ideas like eugenics clearly have something to them that resonates with people, at least until they think hard enough about the ethics or logistics involved. There's a reason eugenics cropped up in the first place. So yes, insofar as you suppress a dangerously seductive idea, you do make it worse, because it takes actually explaining what the flaws were with the idea to shake people out of it.
Re: YouTube is banning anti-vaccine activists and blocking all anti-vaccine content
#403Good!
Re: YouTube is banning anti-vaccine activists and blocking all anti-vaccine content
#404Once again, we found a way to get rid of those we don't like by censoring them completely based on any utterance of a Topic or Viewpoint That Can Not Be Expressed Out Loud. Any open discussion or criticism on any sensitive topic could be enough to close down the participant's account, take away their right to be heard and even effectively erase them.
This is not a defense of any particular opinion as much as it is the right for people to be heard by those willing to listen and hopefully keep communication open to foster better education and understanding.
Re: YouTube is banning anti-vaccine activists and blocking all anti-vaccine content
#405My wife is very vaccine hesitant, and every time they make a move like this to block content or take it down, it only strengthens her position. She thinks they’re taking it down because they don’t want people to know the truth. The only thing worse than bad ideas is the suppression of bad ideas. It’s tragic that we knew this at some point, but are going to have to figure it all back out again the hard way.
I have a similar friend, and whenever I provide links to peer reviewed articles, I’m told that I’m a sheep, and to search on DuckDuckGo, as they don’t hide the truth… so, a YouTube ban is going to do little to him.
Re: YouTube is banning anti-vaccine activists and blocking all anti-vaccine content
#406My wife is very vaccine hesitant, and every time they make a move like this to block content or take it down, it only strengthens her position. She thinks they’re taking it down because they don’t want people to know the truth. The only thing worse than bad ideas is the suppression of bad ideas. It’s tragic that we knew this at some point, but are going to have to figure it all back out again the hard way.
That line of reasoning doesn't make a lot of sense to me. One of my family members is also very hesitant to get the vaccine and gets all kind of anti-vaccine propaganda through various groups and channels. She takes that content as "reasonable" and "potentially true" even tho basically all of what I've seen is simply untrue. E.g. an article claiming there were more deaths due to covid vaccines than to covid, which is…
> That line of reasoning doesn't make a lot of sense to me.
A previous fundamental tenant of public health was candid communication.
Censorship goes against that - many activities through this - such as not promoting general health and wellness, diet etc, - go against past foundations of PH.
If people are questioning the legitimacy of PH, censorship reinforces that perception.
Re: YouTube is banning anti-vaccine activists and blocking all anti-vaccine content
#407Time for repeat showing of the free speech debate we’ve already had a dozen times, whoopee! As ever, IMO, the problem isn’t the hosting or the banning, it’s the algorithms. I don’t care whether YouTube hosts anti-vaccine activists, I care that they actively promote anti-vaccine content to users simply because it’s proven to get clicks and earn them money. Bans like this look incredibly stupid when you realise YouTube…
I'm not sure that 'banning' and 'changing the algorithm so that it doesn't pop up' is meaningfully different. We can just assume that YT hasn't banned this content, but it never ever shows up in recommendations. The effect would be practically the same. It's a hard problem to solve.
Banning means the content is not accessible at all.
Changing the Algorithm would mean the content is less discoverable but could still spread outside the platform via alternative methods, such as Tweets, Links, emails, slack, etc.
There is a difference, and the effect is not the same
Re: YouTube is banning anti-vaccine activists and blocking all anti-vaccine content
#408Age old follow-up question. Who decides what anti-vaccine content is? Who is going to draw the fine line? How simple (i.e. black and white) is to make this distinction? Do you trust that person / entity making these decisions for you and your peers? But even without defending free speach, looks to me that when you start censoring you just create multiple new problems with zero solution. So even from a design point of…
The real answers:
* YouTube’s team of content moderators who are directed ultimately by YouTube’s ELT. So… humans. I mean if we expect every highschooler in the US to be able to read a book and interpret its meaning I think we can figure out what anti-vaccine content looks like.
* That same team is going to draw the line. If it were me I would bring the banhammer on any content that had hints of grey because unless the fence is electrified people will try to cozy up to it.
* I mean yeah. You trust them literally every day 24/7 if you use YouTube at all. I don't see what's different now.
The solution is that groups of people who are actively purposely spreading disinformation that is right now in real life killing people loses the platform they have to spread that disinformation.
In the trolly problem of “I can’t say the vaccine contains government microchips and my relatives who are susceptible to this garbage might actually get the vaccine” and “I can say that spike proteins are causing salmonella but Aunt Susie will actually believe me” I know which way I’m pulling the lever.
What’s the body count and risk to others where you think it’s time for someone to be the adult and say you’re not actually allowed to be this stupid anymore because it’s hurting people?
Re: YouTube is banning anti-vaccine activists and blocking all anti-vaccine content
#409A little off topic, but I wish we could stop using this nice-sounding "hesitant" euphemism. Hesitant implies that people are weighing options and open to changing their minds. With the amount of time they have been available and the overabundance of evidence that the COVID vaccines are safe, effective, and that they decrease hospitalizations and death, I find it very hard to believe that anyone is still "on the fence…
At this point in time, nobody not vaccinated yet is interested in your propaganda. Also, the post you are replying to is already sort of doxing his own wife, so please dont make it even worse by capitalising on that.
Re: YouTube is banning anti-vaccine activists and blocking all anti-vaccine content
#410Good. It's long past time we stop humoring the destructive delusional narcissism of anti-vaxxers. Let them build their own fucking YouTube to host their bullshit.