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Original poster

Youtube pushing shady content?

2 replies

garlicktoms · 08/07/2025 21:33

I don't usually watch youtube on my fairly new ipad but I was ill in bed today and thought I would watch some youtube on my ipad. I usually watch it on the TV in the livingroom. I am not signed in on the app and have never used the youtube app or website on my ipad. I open the app but before I sign in all the recommendations are pretty shady, like fairly right wing stuff about immigration, stuff about a counterprotest to Islamic procession in Dublin, video's saying Europe is finished, conspiracy theory stuff etc. There were also some videos about my home city and its more unpleasant areas / problems.

When I go to the youtube app on my phone or sign in these videos don't come up. I live alone and have a private internet connection nobody else uses.

My only conclusion is that this is the kind of content that youtube automatically pushes at people which I think is kind of disturbing as it could stir up hatred and division. Anyone else noticed this?

OP posts:
Namitynamename · 08/07/2025 23:51

garlicktoms · 08/07/2025 21:33

I don't usually watch youtube on my fairly new ipad but I was ill in bed today and thought I would watch some youtube on my ipad. I usually watch it on the TV in the livingroom. I am not signed in on the app and have never used the youtube app or website on my ipad. I open the app but before I sign in all the recommendations are pretty shady, like fairly right wing stuff about immigration, stuff about a counterprotest to Islamic procession in Dublin, video's saying Europe is finished, conspiracy theory stuff etc. There were also some videos about my home city and its more unpleasant areas / problems.

When I go to the youtube app on my phone or sign in these videos don't come up. I live alone and have a private internet connection nobody else uses.

My only conclusion is that this is the kind of content that youtube automatically pushes at people which I think is kind of disturbing as it could stir up hatred and division. Anyone else noticed this?

Yes. It doesn't even have to be because of a malicious agenda.
We evolved to pay more attention to negative things/threats. Special media algorithms know this and tend towards showing things that make you angry or scared because that gets engagement. It's also why there are so many ragebait tiktokers saying deliberately provocative things. YouTube wants you to stay engaged so pushes that stuff at you. "Content creators" also want you engaged so they tend to get more extreme in there messaging. And video titles have to be clickbait so its never "this is quite a bad trend" but "THIS is the reason Britain is COOKED" or "Europe will never come back from this". And to be fair, the same for other countries. According to YouTube video titles every day there is another reason whyChinese collapse is imminent etc. Even sensible informative YouTubers have to use hysterical titles.

Plus there are also lots of people out there pushing/producing content intended to divide us.

It's a fine line between being informed of the problems of the world. And also knowing that when I leave the house the majority of interactions I have are proactive or at worst neutral. And that there are lots of reasons to be grateful to live in this country.

Namitynamename · 08/07/2025 23:55

But that's why I don't watch YouTube shorts. Its bad for normal YouTube videos but not as bad.

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