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takyon [soylentnews.org] writes:

YouTube to crack down on inappropriate content masked as kids' cartoons [arstechnica.com]

Recent news stories [nytimes.com] and blog posts [medium.com] highlighted the underbelly of YouTube Kids, Google's children-friendly version of the wide world of YouTube. While all content on YouTube Kids is meant to be suitable for children under the age of 13, some inappropriate videos using animations, cartoons, and child-focused keywords manage to get past YouTube's algorithms and in front of kids' eyes. Now, YouTube [arstechnica.com] will implement a new policy in an attempt to make the whole of YouTube safer: it will age-restrict inappropriate videos [google.com] masquerading as children's content in the main YouTube app.

[...]Also, all age-restricted content is not eligible for advertising, which will undoubtedly hit the wallets of the creators making these videos. While it's hard to understand why anyone would make a video about Peppa Pig drinking bleach [youtube.com] or a bunch of superheroes and villains participating in a cartoonish yet violent "nursery rhyme [youtube.com]," it's been a decent way to make money on YouTube. Some of these videos have amassed hundreds of thousands (and sometimes millions) of views, gleaning ad dollars and channel popularity.

Check the related videos to see some bizarre clickbait. Some are even live action skits performed by adults.

Are we doing enough to traumatize our kids?

Also at The Verge [theverge.com] and Medium [medium.com].

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