Channel Update: A Few Thoughts on YouTube’s Comment Policy

Hi, everyone, thanks for watching. In this short video I just want to talk about a couple of guidelines for leaving comments, not just on my channel but on any video you may watch on YouTube.

What I’m going to say is based not only on my own experiences leaving comments in recent months, but also on trends I’ve noticed when people comment on my videos. Or, when people TRY to comment, that is, as many comments simply do not show up.

As you may know, over the past few months YouTube has instituted several changes that impact videos in a number of ways, including a variety of algorithms intended to weed out spam or comments deemed hateful in some way.

One recent change is that YouTube removed the numerical counter from the “dislike” button on videos. This change was made in response to organized attacks by trolls to deliberately down-vote a video so that it might appear to be substantially more disliked than it actually is.

Removing the numerical counter from the dislike button also has the added benefit of removing the “fun” part for trolls, who are no longer able to see how many hundreds of dislikes they’ve added to a particular video. Personally, I think this is a great idea.

When it comes specifically to comments, YouTube now has a variety of algorithms designed to combat spam, reduce hate speech, and generally make it harder for trolls. Of course, these algorithms are run by AI, and AI is far from perfect. Thus, comments that are NOT spam or hate speech often get caught up and are censored.

I’m not going to waste time talking about whether YouTube’s algorithms are violating anyone’s free speech, or impacting one group over another. There are plenty of videos that do that. Instead I’m simply going to give 5 quick tips that hopefully will help reduce the number of “missing” comments. At least on my channel, that is.

First, beware of copy and pasting comments, even if they’re your own. One of the telltale signs of spam accounts is that they will post the same comment over and over again. YouTube looks for this kind of activity, and if you do it too, YouTube may lump you in with the spam comments they’re trying to get rid of. I’ve made this mistake before, and I have had comments that disappear because of it.

Second, be careful with the links. On my own channel I get notification of comments being left on videos, but occasionally those comments simply don’t show up. My working theory is that YouTube takes a harder look at comments with links, and may sometimes be misreading them as possible spam. Links are often essential, of course, but make sure it’s relevant to the comment you’re leaving.

Third, multiple links will raise red flags. Comments with two or more links are often associated with spam or trolls. You might have a great comment, but if you’re adding multiple links to it you will run the risk of YouTube’s algorithms kicking in. Also, not all links are created equal, so you’ll want to use a bit of discernment in what you’re linking to.

Fourth, be careful with certain words and phrases. If you’ve made a comment that doesn’t show up on a video, take another look at it for potentially containing words or phrases that YouTube frowns upon. Don’t just keep posting it over and over again, hoping that it shows up, as that will kick in the copy and paste algorithm that I mentioned previously. Instead, rephrase it so that it’s not caught up and blocked by any algorithm.

Fifth, leave your comment on my website. This only applies to my YouTube channel, of course, but if for any reason you are not able to post your comment on my videos, I encourage you to go to Antichrist45.com and leave it there. There are no algorithms on my website, and I will respond to your comment as soon as I can.

Finally, while YouTube’s algorithms can be a bit tricky to figure out, my own channel’s comment policy is a bit more cut and dry. Comments that are hateful or advocate violence in some way will be deleted by me.

It’s fine if we disagree on a certain bible doctrine, which happens quite a bit. But I simply ask that you not try and make my channel a soapbox for your beliefs. And please don’t condemn others to an eternity in hell because they disagree with you, as I’ve seen a few people do in the comments.

Remember, we are told to judge not that we may not be judged. And I’ll try and do a better job on this going forward, too. Needless to say, I have a LOT of room for improvement in how I handle comments on my channel.

So, that’s all for this short video. Thanks for taking the time to watch, and I’ll talk to you guys soon. May God bless you and yours. ♦