by Felipe Parada

 

YouTube has become the leading site for all types of video content. It's a great site to see what new games are trending and for some great demo gameplay footage of upcoming games. Livestreams are becoming more and more popular as gamers like to see what unpredictable moments unfold in their favorite games. 

 

I use YouTube more for gaming, educational, self improvement and political debate content, shout out to the Real Men Real Style Channel. If there is content that I can watch to make myself a better person than I was yesterday then I'm watching it. I understand that not everyone uses YouTube the way that I do and it's ok but there seems to be a shift in content that needs to be addressed. 

 

What I have noticed lately that the livestreams and video content are starting to become unpredictable in a different sort of way. It seems that in the midst of producing their content the host(s) seem to forget that the cameras are rolling and for a split second we get to see the human and not the online personality. I think this is where the problem lies. A lot of these content producers are injecting their own toxic personal views in the videos and it's not good.

 

PewDiePie was caught a couple of months ago using derogatory comments toward another player while livestreaming a session of Playerunkown's Battlegrounds. I am not going to post a link or describe the video because these sort if instances shouldn't be celebrated. There was that split second where he forgot the cameras were rolling, and he knew what he had done. You can really pinpoint the very instant where he knew he messed up. Almost instantly he issued an apology and everyone seemed to have moved on but nobody really forgot. 

 

About a week ago I was browsing YouTube to see what was trending and I stumbled upon a certain video about the Suicide Forest incident. I am not going to repeat this YouTuber's name because I am not going to give him free advertising (I'm sure you know who he is by now). He already has around 9 million followers and im not adding to it. The video he posted was disturbing not because of the content but of his reaction. He made light of the subject of suicide by laughing and joking about it. 

 

Now I'm not at all offended by this but it is a bit concerning. I'm sure that his intention was not to offend anyone but that doesn't mean that he didn't accomplish it. I believe he was just to stupid to know that his actions were going to cause backlash and I'm sorry but the apology he issued was very half-assed. In addition I'll throw in PewDiePie's apology too because this isn't the first time he has been caught using derogatory language so sorry I just can't accept the apology.

 

I understand that we live in sensitive times but going out of your way to offend someone is just unacceptable and you can't go around using the excuse that "I didn't know". It seems that YouTube is being invaded by these former Vine stars who believe that shock content is the order of the day.  Everyone in the video was laughing including his friends who were trying very hard to cover up their laughs and smiles. 

 

While all this is going on YouTube did nothing about it. There was no order to take down the video, no "Graphic Content" warning, nothing. It was allowed to remain on the site where anyone, and I do mean ANYONE can watch it. I can only imagine how many kids came across this video since it was so easy to find. 

 

Now we are in a very sensitive situation yet again. We must tread lightly hoping we don't fall down a pit of nonsense and stupidity. But how careful can we be if YouTube allows questionable content to be posted everyday with no repercussions? Both YouTube and it's content creators need to be held to higher standards of content restrictions. Everyone needs to be held accountable for their actions but unfortunately it doesn't seem to be the case. 

 

Sadly, YouTube isn't a safe place anymore. YouTube has become the new chat roulette where you really don't know what you're going to get once you click a link. As a parent I too am concerned with what my child will view once he discovers YouTube. It is also my responsibility to teach my son how safely navigate the trenches and stay away from damaging content.

 

Hopefully YouTube will become wise and recognize that there is a problem that needs to be dealt with. Also, content creators need to bear that responsibility and make better decisions as to what should and shouldn't be posted. These online personalities don't realize how influential they really are and YouTube can't let them run free without some sort of restriction. This won't slow down YouTube by any means and I don't expect it to but now content creators are put on notice. If they aren't careful they can land themselves with a petition to have their accounts shut down and nobody wants that. 

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Is YouTube a toxic place? Let us know in your comments below.