Should YouTube get rid of 'Restricted Mode'? | The Tylt
The LGBTQ community is calling out YouTube for censoring their content under the platform's Restricted Mode—which is meant to "filter out mature content for the tiny subset of users who want a more limited experience." YouTube says it is not censoring anyone, the overly strict restrictions were simply a mistake. Content creators are calling for an immediate fix or YouTube to dump it completely, because the system is obviously broken. What do you think?

While LGBTQ creators were the first to raise the alarm about Restricted Mode, many other content creators have seen their videos affected as well. Political pundits like Paul Joseph Watson, H3H3 Productions, Pewdiepie and other non-political channels have their videos hidden under Restricted Mode for no apparent reason.
It’s a feature that’s been around for at least a year, but YouTube producers haven’t been feeling the hurt until now. Since YouTube ramped up the mode’s restrictions, several LGBT bloggers discovered that their content was blocked, and accused the platform of hiding their videos.
People are speculating YouTube is caving in to advertisers who want a safer advertising experience.
Despite complaints from the LGBT community, it’s clear that restricted mode isn’t specifically targeting queer content. It’s difficult to say whether the restrictions are the fault of Google’s algorithms or whether they are simply cracking down on anything remotely offensive to appease advertisers.
YouTube is in an impossible situation where it has to balance the needs of corporate advertisers against the needs of its community. At the end of the day, YouTube needs to pay the bills and that means making an ad-friendly environment on its platform. Restricted Mode isn't censorship, it's just business.
Technology companies across the board have been facing increasing scrutiny over their roles in promoting or facilitating terrorist groups online. Last June, family members of some of the victims of the Pulse nightclub killings in Florida filed a lawsuit against Google, Twitter, and Facebook for providing “material support” to the terrorist organization known as ISIS. The same month, the father of a U.S. citizen who was killed in the Paris terrorist attacks in November 2015 announced plans to sue Twitter, Facebook, and Google for the same reason. Earlier in the year, the families of two U.S.-based contractors killed in a suspected terrorist attack in Jordan announced they were suing Twitter for “knowingly” allowing ISIS to attract new recruits.
The YouTube community team released a statement saying it's not targeting any particular community, nor is it censoring creators. Restricted Mode is effectively a parental control option and it's something that has to be done as YouTube grows and needs to reach a wider audience.
A message to our community ... pic.twitter.com/oHNiiI7CVs
— YouTube Creators (@YTCreators) March 20, 2017
The YouTube community responded to the statement, saying:
.@YTCreators you're blocking everything with any hint of lgbtq+! Vids of me swearing aren't restricted but transwomen makeup tutorials are
— dodie (@doddleoddle) March 20, 2017
@doddleoddle @YTCreators I TOTALLY understand a small handful of my videos that are sexual in nature but most of the restricted ones aren't. it's asinine
— Stef Sanjati (@stefsanjati) March 20, 2017
hi @YTCreators something of a bigger issue here, why is me literally just eating chicken mature content pic.twitter.com/BMlBsS8Sw4
— RealZous 💦 (@Trollzous) March 20, 2017
The YouTube Community team say it's working on the problem. But this is the latest of many YouTube missteps surrounding ads and censorship.
Sorry for all the confusion with Restricted Mode. Some videos have been incorrectly labeled and that’s not right. We're on it! More to come.
— YouTube Creators (@YTCreators) March 20, 2017
"YouTube! You need to take some responsibility for your content and censor all the terrible people!"
— Angela Night (@Angelheartnight) March 20, 2017
YouTube *censors everyone*
Youtube: This isn't a policy change, its just a notification/appeal change.
— Philip DeFranco (@PhillyD) September 1, 2016
Me: So before you were just turning off ads and not emailing us?
@emmablackery YouTube wants to be safe for all advertisers. That's what restricted mode is for. It has nothing to do with kids safety.
— Jamie (@Jamwamee) March 17, 2017