Alphabet-owned YouTube has responded to allegations that it unfairly blocked some videos from the LGBTQ community under its “restricted mode.”
Restricted mode is intended to “screen out potentially objectionable content that you may prefer not to see, or don’t want others in your family to see,” Google’s webpage states. “We use community flagging, age-restrictions, and other signals to identify and filter out potentially inappropriate content.”
But some LGBTQ-related videos, such as one of a lesbian couple reading their wedding vows to each other, don’t show up in restricted-mode, according to Gizmodo. One user (who is one of many to use the hashtags #YoutubeIsOverParty or #YoutubePartyIsOver) noted that Ariana Grande’s vlog featuring anti-bullying advice to her gay fans also seemed to have disappeared in restricted mode:
https://twitter.com/DAILYSTOESSEL/status/843603209394372608
In response, YouTube has released a statement saying it was “looking into your concerns,” and that Restricted Mode was made for “a tiny subset” of YouTube users. The statement though didn’t admit that allegations about YouTube unfairly blocking some LGBTQ content were correct.
A message to our community … pic.twitter.com/oHNiiI7CVs
— YouTube Creators (@YouTubeCreators) March 20, 2017
While pointing toward the statement above, YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki said she was “pushing our teams to investigate.”
I wanted to reemphasize this message to our community. The LGBT community means a lot to YouTube and I'm pushing our teams to investigate. Https://t.co/ywyc2sLiHV
— Susan Wojcicki (@SusanWojcicki) March 20, 2017
The #YoutubePartyIsOver hashtag was still going strong early Monday.