Tuesday, August 29, 2017

YouTube Political Economic Censorship

YouTube stands accused of censorship, following the company’s decision to bar former Congressman Ron Paul and his online news program from receiving advertising revenue for a number of videos which Paul recently posted.

Upon “manual review,” the website has found a series of videos posted by the Ron Paul Liberty Report “unsuitable for all advertisers,” effectively denying Paul and his online news program potential revenue from views.

[...]

Dr. Paul, a 12-term ex-congressman and three-time presidential candidate, is known for views that often contradict those of Washington’s political establishment, especially on issues of war and peace. He currently helms the Ron Paul Institute for Peace and Prosperity, headquartered near Houston, Texas. “We have no violence, no foul language, no political extremism, no hate or intolerance,” Daniel McAdams, co-producer of the Ron Paul Liberty Report, told RT America. “Our program is simply a news analysis discussion from a libertarian and antiwar perspective.” McAdams, who also is executive director of the Ron Paul Institute for Peace and Prosperity, added that the YouTube demonetization “creates enormous financial burdens for the program.”

[...]

YouTube has done the same to a number of political commentators. Most recently, those affected by the advert ban include left-wing online blogger Tim Black and right-wing commentator Paul Joseph Watson. Their videos have registered millions of views on the website.

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Previously, YouTube demonetized popular videos by Diamond and Silk, two black women who strongly support Trump, as well as the work of left-wing humorist Jimmy Dore.

[...]

“Demonetization is a deliberate effort to stamp out independent political commentary – from the left or the right,” Black told the Boston Globe’s Hiawatha Bray. “It’s not about specific videos... It’s about pushing out diversity of thought and uplifting major news networks such as CNN, Fox News and MSNBC.”

  RT
This is not right. YouTube cannot be allowed to decide who or what views are acceptable for financing. YouTube, while being privately owned, is essentially a public service provider, and should be subject to regulations just like telephone companies, TV and radio.

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