Google is well aware that the hair-raising comments of YouTube users have turned the service into a fright fest.
It’s tried to drain the swamp. In February 2015, for example, it created a kid-safe app that would keep things like, oh, say, racist/anti-Semitic/homophobic comments or zombies from scaring the bejeezus out of young YouTubers.
Now, Google’s trying something new: it’s soliciting “YouTube Heroes” to don their mental hazmat suits and dive in to do some cleanup.
You work hard to make YouTube better for everyone… and like all heroes, you deserve a place to call home.
This video explains the program:
As they climb up the ladder, earning points for do-gooderism and advancing to higher levels, the Heroes will get access to a dashboard for online moderation, access to exclusive workshops and “Hero hangouts,” and sneak previews of YouTube product launches and test products before they’re released to the general public.
Other perks they can gain along the way include access to “super tools,” such as the ability to mass-flag videos.
YouTube announced the program in a post on its help channel on Wednesday.
Here’s what it’s asking volunteers to do:
- Flag inappropriate videos. Here are some details about its Trusted Flagger Program.
- Add captions and subtitles to videos.
- Share knowledge with other users on the YouTube Help forum, which is available in English, French, German, Hindi, Japanese, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish.
Doing those tasks will earn users points that they can use to get the perks in this new crowdsourcing program.
To participate, you have to agree to and comply with the YouTube Heroes Program Rules.
Google says the program, offered everywhere YouTube is available, is currently in beta and subject to change.
Our goal is to have a positive impact on our users, and we look forward to refining the Program as it continues.
Andy
This program will be a disasters as bored SWJs go on a flagging fest to rid youtube of the content that triggers them.
misanthropicjoy
That’s exactly who will be attracted to the program. The other half will be the sorts that want to watch the world burn. This is going to be an absolute disaster.
Mahhn
Cool, I can help get rid of half the hate propaganda. And that’s just by removing Fox and CNN news post.
Anonymous
Then the public won’t know the truth about stuff, this stuff needs to be fact checked and then rated accordingly…..
Mahhn
fact check Fox, then get back to me on that truth stuff. CNN post limited information to get you to draw the conclusions they want you to have. Which isn’t much different than Fox’s blatant lies.
Anonymous
If they wanted me to do all that, I’d require more compensation than just “points.”
Jim
Given the vitriolic nature of the people who respond to videos they disagree with, it’s really hard to imagine how this can ever be a good thing. Just because something is unpopular does not mean it’s evil.
delayedthoughtengineering
There is a lot of mention in the video of flagging content. However, I don’t see the content as the issue. In fact, contentious content begs analysis and counterpoint content. Sometimes counter-arguments miss points, but the bottom line is that I don’t see content as a big problem on YouTube. Popular content naturally bubbles up and bad content is eventually forgotten.
The real issue is YouTube comments. The YouTube comment sections are infamous for having some of the worst hate speech on the internet, and therefore, the world. There is hate speech and shaming on even the most benign videos. I would want advanced tools to wipe out entire discussion threads and to search for similar sentence structure to hunt down multiple offensive accounts populated by the same individuals. I want to be able to track down these individuals to report them to guardians and other authorities.
Bad actors hide behind anonymity while enjoying blatant ignorance and fury. Google has done some efforts towards identifying users while keeping them safe, but their efforts have either largely irritated the community while reducing the safety of a few vulnerable individuals, or has been completely ineffective.
Comments make YouTube relatively unsafe, if only from an emotional point of view. In many cases, I see videos with comments completely disabled, and I’m perfectly fine with that, knowing the comment community’s vitriol. Talented young people are “hushed” by harsh comments, and we are all diminished for it.
James
I don’t want youtube points but I want google stocks as a reward. How about that.
Anonymous
Maybe Google should google “hero”. This sounds more like being an unpaid septic tank cleaner.
SumGuy
RIP Youtube. It’s gonna become a Flagfest. Though there are a ton of misleading titles out there that deserve to be flagged. I somehow think this is not going to fix that.
roy jones jr
Thats interesting that this is going on. I never see ads when attempting to watch a video about this. I only see ads about donald trump and hillary. So um can youtube do something about that too?
Euler Neto
No, thanks. I don’t contribute to non open source projects.