Monday, April 24, 2006

Violence, Money, and YouTube

After over 5000 views, YouTube pulled a gruesome "KILL AMERICAN TROOPS" film.

Although the video had been posted since February, it took a link from the Drudge Report to get the site to yank it.

The message on the page now simply reads: This video has been removed due to terms of use violation.

This isn't a matter of trampling on free speech rights. YouTube determines what sort of content is acceptable on the site.

Graphic images of slaughtered U.S. troops apparently violate the terms of use. Imagine that.


Actually, I wouldn't be surprised if the powers that be at YouTube knew about the video's content.

I think the fact that it was removed after so many views is more a testament to the power of Drudge, than YouTube's concern about enforcing its policies.

The link from Drudge meant very bad PR for YouTube. What's bad for YouTube is bad for its advertisers.

It's probably all about the money. It usually is.

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