Dear YouTube! | Summary and Q&A

TL;DR

YouTube is planning to hide the public dislike count for all videos, citing potential negative impacts on creators' well-being and targeted dislike campaigns as reasons.

Key Insights

• 👨‍🔬 YouTube is responding to creator feedback and research findings by hiding the public dislike count for videos.
• 👤 Hiding the dislike counter can impact users' ability to assess the quality and relevance of a video.
• 🚒 YouTube is not solely a recommendation engine like other platforms; it also functions as a search engine, making the dislike count more critical for users.
• 👤 The video dislikes can provide valuable feedback for both creators and users.
• 💬 Removing the dislike count may increase the burden on creators to monitor and manage negative comments.
• 💬 Current tools like blocking, filtering, and moderating comments are not sufficient to address mental health concerns for creators.
• 🎯 Dislike bombs and targeted disliking can be mitigated with more nuanced solutions rather than completely hiding the dislike count.

Transcript

so you know they say when you really love something you don't go easy on it you actually critique it more because you want it to be better and you have higher expectations for it because you want it to be so good so i've already made a dear youtube video where i talked about some of the qualms i had with youtube and the experiments they were runnin... Read More

Questions & Answers

Q: Why is YouTube planning to hide the public dislike count for videos?

YouTube's main reason for this change is to protect creators' well-being and prevent targeted dislike campaigns that can harm their mental health.

Q: How will hiding the dislike counter impact users?

Users rely on the like/dislike ratio to determine if a video is worth their time. Without this information, it becomes difficult to quickly assess the value of a video.

Q: Are there any similarities between YouTube and other platforms regarding dislikes?

While platforms like Facebook and TikTok don't have a dislike button, YouTube's role as both a content recommendation engine and a search engine makes the dislike count useful for users searching for specific content.

Q: Will hiding dislikes lead to an increase in negative comments?

The comment section on YouTube is already a hotspot for negative feedback. Removing the dislike counter may shift negativity from the counter to the comments section, potentially exacerbating mental health issues for creators.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• YouTube announced that they will be hiding the public dislike counter for all videos, based on feedback from creators and the findings of their research teams.

• The primary reason for this change is to protect creators' mental health and prevent targeted dislike campaigns.

• However, removing the dislike counter can hinder users' ability to quickly assess the quality and relevance of a video before deciding to watch it.