YouTube is restricting teen access to content that idealizes specific body types and fitness levels by limiting recommendations for related videos, the platform has said. — Photo: Monika Skolimowska/dpa
NEW YORK: YouTube is restricting video recommendations for teenagers to better shield them from content that idealises particular body types, fitness levels or body weights, the platform has announced.
Working with a team of experts on child development and digital learning, YouTube has identified "categories of content that may be innocuous as a single video, but could be problematic for some teens if viewed repetitively," the platform said.
Those include videos that compare "physical features and idealises some types over others" as well as content that "idealises specific fitness levels or body weights, or displays social aggression in the form of non-contact fights and intimidation."
In order to safeguard young people from this kind of content, YouTube announced it will in future restrict repeated recommendations of related videos for teenagers worldwide.
YouTube's algorithm is designed to keep users on the platform for as long as possible by recommending similar or related content based on previous user behaviour.
It takes into account factors such as previously viewed videos, search queries and interactions such as likes or comments.
This leads to users who have viewed videos on certain topics being shown more and more similar content.
According to YouTube, young people are far more susceptible than adults to developing negative beliefs about themselves if they repeatedly see content that promotes "ideal standards" that they do not fulfil. – dpa
