YouTube @ Polluting a learning resource
A humungous amount of content unfit for children finds its way to the platform
‘Toys in Japan’ is a YouTube channel available globally. The ‘About’ page shows the channel has been online since 28 July 2011. Its videos have so far enjoyed 301,912,936 views, and counting. That’s an impressive number if you are familiar with YouTube subscription-monetisation mechanisms. I stumbled upon ‘Toys in Japan’ last month when I was enjoying a few ‘Finger Family’ videos with my toddler son, when ‘autoplay’ pushed a new video from the channel to the top of the watch list and started playing it.
Polluting a learning resource
In developing countries where children from low-income families and socially oppressed castes and classes do not have the wherewithal to access quality instructional content (via libraries or smart classes), they rely on resources such as YouTube. Now, with the explosion in low-cost data, more families are finding video content accessible. Their children stand to lose much by watching YouTube’s garbage.
Google introduced a YouTube for Kids app some time ago, which it claims makes filtering easier. But considering the fact that a user cannot uninstall the default YouTube app on an Android phone, this hardly makes a difference. Children will continue to have access to YouTube and its pollutants. Google must devote more funds and R&D towards cleaning up its libraries for children. If it doesn’t wake up to the realities, what awaits the IT giant is the fate of Facebook or Twitter, which are now facing a serious identity crisis courtesy the way they compromised privacy and let hate speech and fake news spread. Weeding out profiles such as Toys in Japan would be a great place to begin.
More Info | Business Line | 20th September 2018 | Page No 10
Regards
Mr. Pralhad Jadhav
Master of Library & Information Science (NET Qualified)
Research Scholar (IGNOU)
Senior Manager @ Knowledge Repository
Khaitan & Co
Mobile @ 9665911593
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