I feel like some folks are missing the point somewhat. You seeing the ad isn’t the problem. This isn’t a bad taste problem.
The issue is that society at large will be bombarded with these ads. To those on their blackberries wondering why this is such a big deal YouTube is an absurdly wide reaching platform that gets more eyeballs a day than pretty much anything else. People ‘YouTube’ like they used to ‘google’. The idea that the platform is primarily frequented by children is wildly innacurate. There’s as much content on YouTube dedicated to welding techniques as there is cat videos.
And to those of you proudly announcing that you steal content from these creators, shame on you. If you don’t like YouTube’s ads then don’t visit YouTube. You’re in no way entitled to their content.
In fairness, I’d like to point out that there are often other ways to support creators besides watching ads. Many channel owners have multiple revenue streams, including Patreon, affiliate links, and branded merchandise. Some of us prefer contributing directly rather than depending on ad payments, especially since YouTube has whimsically demonetized certain videos over content or copyright issues. So it might not be accurate to assume that those who avoid ads are simply stealing content.
– He could have held onto the Senate
– He could have fought Citizens United instead of meekly accepting it
– He could have prevented the end of the southern civil rights voting act which disenfranchised many and suppressed elections in state houses congressional races and senate races during his tenure.
And he could have said to the American people the rise up and tell Mitch McConnell he was doing wrong instead of shrugging and saying well, that fine, I’d hate to get anybody upset.
Obama with great at getting elected and horrible at actually leading, which is why his presidency is a great victory for anyone who wanted to feel better about themselves and not really a victory for anybody who wanted a better America.
You seem to be ascribing a lot of wish fulfillment toward presidential powers that just don’t exist. Especially when you have an uncooperative Congress. There’s a reason Obama had to lead through executive order and that Trump is having such an easy time undoing much of the good things Obama did.
Now, as an online entertainment and information service, YouTube is not actually covered by the laws that implemented the equal-time rule. And in, say, 2005, it probably shouldn’t have been. But in 2020, with so many people using it as a primary source for their information about the world and the things that might be of interest to them, this is due for revisiting.
And even if it goes above and beyond what the law requires, I’d like Youtube to voluntarily state that it will abide by the principles of the equal-time rule for political advertising, making only the allowances necessary for differences in its medium versus television or radio.
Inking a deal with the incumbent’s campaign after only the first few nominating contests are in the books on the opposition side is, well, just the opposite of that mindset.
