YouTube reverses ban on 2020 US election denialism content

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: News websites
3 Jun 2023 12:01

YouTube announces in a blog post that “content that advances false claims that widespread fraud, errors, or glitches occurred in the 2020 and other past US presidential elections” will not be removed.

Logo of YouTube (AFP)

YouTube announced on Friday that it will no longer delete videos containing erroneous claims that the 2020 US presidential election was stolen, changing a policy implemented more than two years ago amid a surge of election disinformation.

The platform stated in a blog post that “content that advances false claims that widespread fraud, errors, or glitches occurred in the 2020 and other past US presidential elections” will not be removed.

“In the current environment, we find that while removing this content does curb some misinformation, it could also have the unintended effect of curtailing political speech without meaningfully reducing the risk of violence or other real-world harm,” YouTube added.

The platform claimed that the changes aim at “protecting our community, and providing a home for open discussion and debate."

While the policy that was scrapped ostensibly covered all previous US elections, YouTube appeared to focus its censorship on content questioning the 2020 results, ignoring or even promoting content that suggested the 2016 outcome was the result of alleged Russian interference, most notably if it came from renowned media outlets.

In further detail, YouTube confessed to eliminating "tens of thousands" of videos as a result of the now-rescinded restriction on discussing election fraud. However, the platform's blog post made no mention of whether any of the videos will be restored or re-evaluated. While YouTube allows users whose video has been deleted to appeal the decision, some argue the procedure is merely for show and seldom, if ever, leads to the reinstatement of content.

The platform also reminded users that the rest of its "election misinformation" policies remained in effect, which meant that they could not post content intended to mislead voters about when, where, or how to vote, or anything else that might discourage someone from voting or encourage someone to interfere with elections.

Freedom of speech has emerged as a significant topic in the 2024 elections, with Republican frontrunner Donald Trump and leading Republican rival Ron DeSantis, as well as Democratic contender Robert F. Kennedy Jr., threatening to oppose Big Tech's broad censorship powers.