(Mirror Daily, United States) – Google-owned YouTube has recently announced that it will block comments and advertising on videos that have hints of child exploitation following a pedophilia scandal.
A few days ago, major brands like e-Bay, Amazon, Lidl, and Adidas pulled out their ads from clips showing children being exploited by pedophiles. A recent report shows that videos of young girls in bikinis and scantily clad young boys attract creepy comments from pedophiles.
According to AdNews, the video-sharing platform has started banning advertising and blocking comments on these videos. But experts believe more should be done. Many of the videos showing children in inappropriate positions are created in Russia and other similar countries.
Brands are concerned such content could lure in sexual predators and place children at risk. If parents saw the content, many of them would be alarmed at where the freedom of expression can lead.
For instance, teen Jake Mitchell’s videos showing him half naked triggered many unsuitable comments from older men. Such clips, however, had ads from major brands including one ad for Google Home.
YouTube Taking Action in Wake of Pedophilia Scandal
YouTube recently said that content that puts kids at risk is “unacceptable”. As a result, the company disabled the comment section on thousands of such clips and banned hundreds of users that harassed children.
YouTube also said that it is working “urgently” to ban the ads from such videos. On the other hand, experts believe that the amount of content posted on daily basis on YouTube is nearly impossible to police.
Advertising experts noted that no major brand wants to be associated with pedophilia on YouTube no matter how small the audience for that content may be. YouTube could do more for brand safety control, experts believe.
Twitter, Facebook, and other social media platforms are facing similar challenges. They find it increasingly hard to tell the difference between inappropriate and appropriate content.
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