Karl Kasarda and Ian McCollum of InRangeTV are two gun enthusiast vloggers who say they will turn to PornHub after some of their videos were removed by YouTube due to the company changing its policy on gun related content. A move some might think would put them at odds with their more conservative and often Christian audience, but in the age of Trumpism that’s no longer a safe bet. It’s not yet clear if people will want to have their web history showing they searched for a video on Pornhub, but the people that live and breath gun culture are as resourceful as they come and they will get their message out.
The BBC broke the policy change from YouTube down this way. It prohibits:
- show how to make a firearm, ammunition, high-capacity magazine or homemade silencers
- are designed to sell guns or specific accessories including high-capacity magazines and tools that convert a firearm to automatic fire
- show how to convert a firearm to automatic or simulated-automatic fire
- show how to install such accessories or modifications
Pretty straight forward as far as policy goes but as European Vlogger Jörg Sprave pointed out to Vice’s Motherboard “Many gun channels must now be afraid, as they might get plenty of strikes in no time for older videos and then lose their channels. They should at least get some time to clean up their videos so the new rules are kept. Again, not the way you treat ‘partners.’
That’s what gets under people’s skin. It’s like YouTube assumes second amendment advocates won’t comply with new regulations, but they pride themselves on following rules and laws — that’s a huge part of 2nd amendment culture. For anyone who is slightly familiar with American gun culture they are a people who value ingenuity and dedication to their craft. It is not surprising that they will be resourceful in getting around new regulations by the largest vlogging platform in the world. YouTube looks bad in this situation. While it’s taken them years to address the influence of jihadis like Anwar Awlaki on YouTube and how he’s radicalized thousands, posthumously, they proactively censor what would be considered a sphere in conservative American politics, gun culture and second amendment activism.
Maybe YouTube should sit down with the Americans they are actually censoring and allow them to comply. Because frankly YouTube looks like a petty, partisan corporate bully.
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