Censorship on YouTube

The world has become closer than in the past because of technology. Internet is the best media to spread new information to other places. I became interested in YouTube because I think YouTube is a very famous website that almost everybody uses. There are many kinds of videos on YouTube, such as news, music videos, and funny videos that make users enjoy themselves. According to Carson (2008), YouTube’s revenue will be $90 million in 2008. This is one of the statistics to guarantee that YouTube is one of the most famous websites in the world. However, YouTube has some mistakes that cause misunderstanding. Some videos on YouTube are too violent for children. It also has inappropriate videos that should not be posted on YouTube. For example, YouTube posted a clip video that insulted the king of Thailand (The Nation, 2007). Another example is that YouTube posted videos about teasing politicians that make people confused (Akerman, 2007). From “Business in the hotseat over Net censorship” (Toronto Star, 2008) many countries, such as China, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Myanmar, Turkey, and Thailand, have tried to block access to YouTube because of offending videos.

There are many reasons to show that YouTube should censor some videos, because some videos have too much violence that are harmful for children, some videos affect other people’s feeling, and bad videos may affect YouTube’s image.

The first reason that YouTube should censor videos before posting is that some videos are dangerous for children. Danger includes words, violence, and sex. Nowadays, children use internet to search for information almost every day. It is very easy to see what they want on some video clips. Some videos are cartoons, but actors and actresses use impolite words. Children may think these words are normal words that everybody uses in daily life. A lot of clips in YouTube are about sex. Children are too young to learn about sex by watching video. It also may be dangerous to their studying, because they just want to use internet to watch video clips all the time, and do not pay attention to their studying.

The second reason is the detail in some videos can hurt watcher’s feeling. Some videos have pictures about killing each other, or insult someone that some people love. For example, YouTube shows videos that insult The Thai King. YouTube should learn who the Thai King is, and how important he is to Thai people. YouTube also posted videos that tease the U.S. presidential candidates. These videos can make people confused about which one is his or her real character between reliable and funny person. If people are angry with YouTube, they may decide to change to use other websites that provide similar videos, but do not make them feel bad like YouTube.

The third reason is that these bad videos may hurt YoruTube’s image. Image in business is very important for companies. It can tell the class of your product. It also can tell a kind of customers. If YouTube has a good image that provides qualified videos, users want to use this website, because they do not have to worry about what they are going to see. In contrast, if YouTube has a bad image such that everybody thinks YouTube has many bad videos, users may stop using YouTube. So, YouTube should try to protect its image in order to keep their users and get more in the future.

It is true that children may copy some behaviors after they watch bad videos. Some people may argue that parents should know what their children watch; however, we have to think that children spend most of their time in school. It is about 8 hours per day. Every school has a computer for students and teacher can not take care of them person-to-person. When they go back home, parents have to cook for them and do the housework. Parents do not have time to check what their children are doing all the time. From the case of Thailand, some have said that Thai people have to accept the freedom of the internet and not be serious about the Thai King videos. Moreover, some have told YouTube to block these videos only in Thailand. People from different countries should know that The Thai King is like a father of every Thai person. It doesn’t matter whether Thai people can see these videos or not, but Thai people do not want other people in other countries to insult their King. If you were them, do you want some people to make ridiculous pictures of your father and mock him? Do not say anything if you do not exactly know about that. YouTube is the key cause of this problem. YouTube’s revenue may reach $90 million this year. Why can’t YouTube share their profit to set up a censorship department? It should be good if YouTube shows its responsibility for watchers that can help to improve its image.

These three reasons make it very clear why YouTube should censor some videos before posting. There are some videos that are bad examples for children. Children may copy bad behavior after they watch these videos, and their parents can’t control their action all the time. Moreover, some videos insult a person who is loved by other people. People in insulted countries will be angry if YouTube posts these videos, because they do not want somebody to laugh at their respected person. In addition, YouTube has to share its profit to set up a censorship department. YouTube should censor bad videos to keep its image in order to keep its customers.

Akerman, P. (2007, July 19). Politics of sexy silliness - YouTube election. The Daily Telegraph (Australia). Retrieved on March 28, 2008, from Lexis-Nexis.

Carlson, N. (2008, April 2). Competitor: YouTube’s 2008 revenues will reach maybe $90 million. Valleywag weblog. Retrieved on April 8, 2008, from http://valleywag.com/375041/competitor-youtubes-2008-revenues-will-reach-maybe-90-million

The Nation (Thailand). (2007, April 10). Freedom comes with responsibility. Retrieved on March 25, 2008, from Lexis-Nexis.

The Toronto Star. (2008, March 17). Business in the hotseat over Net censorship. Retrieved on April 8, 2008, from Lexis-Nexis.