YouTube should be vetted say MPs but for children misses the point
The Culture, Media and Sport select committee has stated that a new industry body should be set up to protect children from harmful content on YouTube.
This misses the point for me.
Firstly, you can find quite horrible content all over the Internet. So if an under age individual wants to find pornographic, drugs related or Manchester United content, it is there unless blocked. And even if blocked it can surely be found one way or another.
For me on YouTube it is not the video as much as the comments that need to be looked at. The countless racist, bigoted, hate filled diatribes are not well policed by YouTube. And there are links back to the YouTube pages of the authors of the quotes. Well, if you want to hook up with a neo-Nazi it is not too hard.
Some of the YouTube pages for users are truly shocking and frightening and if in print form in the UK would surely be flagged up and dealt with, or you would hope so.
While “saving the children”, why not just save everyone from individuals exploiting YouTube’s blind spot?
Tags: policing the Internet, YouTube
July 31st, 2008 at 10:16 pm
I certainly also don’t want the comment police censoring comments. I certainly get plenty of antigay slurs hurled at me on my youtube channel, but I’d rather keep the freedom of thought and expression than sacrifice it in the interest of keeping everyone safe from unpopular, unkind ideas. More freedom, not less.
August 1st, 2008 at 7:29 pm
Brent,
I am not against unpopular ideas.
I think people who promote ideas that are clearly libelous or promote hate crimes, which are illegal in the UK, should not be given free reign.
No newspaper or TV station in a civilised country could get away with the sentiments I have seen expressed, so why should any other medium?
With freedom comes responsibility. If users are not responsible then they must be policed
Rob