In a new quarterly report it released to show how it’s enforcing its community guidelines, YouTube proves just how successful its addition of AI to flag videos has been so far.
YouTube, just like most other big platforms had a big problem with objectionable content being uploaded and shared on its platform. The problem certainly hasn’t gone away, but now it is being dealt with – rather effectively it seems. In its first “Community Guidelines Enforcement Report,” YouTube shows the progress its making “in removing violative content” from its platform over time.
Among other things, the report shows just how successful YouTube has been in removing “violative videos before they are ever viewed.” With only humans to flag videos, this has been and continues to be a huge challenge. But with the introduction of machines to the process, YouTube has been able to flag and review content effectively, and at scale.
For example, in the beginning of 2017, only 8% of videos “flagged and removed for violent extremism” were removed before they reached 10 views. After introducing machine learning flagging in the summer of 2017, this number jumped to over 50%.
Consequently, in Q4 2017, out of the 8 million videos removed (mostly spam and adult content), 6.7 million were flagged by machine learning – not humans. And 76% of those, were removed before receiving even a single view!
However, it’s not all about machines. YouTube values the human contribution to this process. Ultimately, its “systems rely on human review to assess whether content violates” policies. The company is committed to increasing its staff working on addressing violative content to 10,000 across Google by the end of the year.
It has also already “hired full-time specialists with expertise in violent extremism, counterterrorism, and human rights,” and continues to invest in its network of academics, NGOs, and government partners.
Finally, users have an important role in this as well. To highlight this, YouTube is also introducing a “Reporting History dashboard” so that each user can see what the status of each video they flagged is.
You might also like
More from Youtube
Tired Of Billie Eilish’s ‘Bad Guy’ Video? Here’s A Version That Never Ends
To celebrate the 1 billion views of Billie Eilish's 'Bad Guy', YouTube Music created an interactive 'infinite' version - 'Infinite …
YouTube Will Start Showing Ads On Non-YPP Channels, Won’t Pay Creators
YouTube changed its terms of service in the US to allow it to show ads on non-YPP channels and not …
YouTube Launches Audio Ads To Help Advertisers Reach Listeners
YouTube has announced audio ads, its first ad format designed to connect brands with podcast or music listeners.
YouTube Cancels Rewind 2020
2020 has been a terrible year and YouTube wants you to forget it. That's why there will be no YouTube …
YouTube Music Playlists Just Got An Upgrade
YouTube has announced five new improvements for YouTube Music playlists, making it easier for users to create, discover, and share …
David Blaine’s Latest Stunt Will Air Exclusively On YouTube
David Blaine announced Ascension, his first major stunt in a decade; an online-only event to take place exclusively on his …
TheirTube Shows You What It’s Like In Someone Else’s YouTube Filter Bubble
TheirTube is a YouTube filter bubble simulator showing you the videos that are recommended on six different personas' accounts.
YouTube Launches New Analytics For Artists Dashboard
YouTube has announced a new Analytics for Artists dashboard that shows the performance of music on Offical Artist Channels.