YouTube Lifts Ban on UK's TalkRadio After Station Breaching Content Policy

Sieeka Khan, Tech Times 06 January 2021, 12:01 pm

YouTube has decided to reverse its short-lived ban of UK's TalkRadio from its streaming platform. The decision came in just 12 hours after YouTube removed TalkRadio's channel for what it said were breaches of its community guidelines.

YouTube reverses ban on TalkRadio

TalkRadio is a station that is a part of Rupert Murdoch's TalkSport network, and the station stated that YouTube did not inform them what the recent breach was.

A TalkRadio spokesperson said that they urgently await a detailed response from Google/YouTube about the nature of the breach as it led to the removal of their channel on the platform, according to TechCrunch.

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The spokesperson continued that TalkRadio is an Ofcom-licensed and regulated broadcaster and it has robust editorial controls in place. It also takes care to balance debate on the channel. The station regularly interrogate government data and they have controls in place, they use verifiable sources and they give space to a careful selection of voices and opinions.

On January 5, 2021, YouTube broke its silence and lifted the ban on TalkRadio's account. A YouTube spokesperson said that TalkRadio's YouTube channel was briefly suspended, but after they have reviewed it, the channel has now been reinstated.

The spokesperson added that YouTube quickly remove flagged content that violated their Community Guidelines. This guideline includes COVID-19 content that contradicted expert consensus from local health authorities or the World Health Organization.

The spokesperson said that YouTube make exceptions. As long as the material posted is with an educational, documentary, scientific or artistic purpose, then that does not count and they deemed that was the case of TalkRadio.

YouTube's Community Guidelines

YouTube's content moderation system has a "three strikes" rule, under which accounts can be issued strikes for posting content that violates content guidelines, according to BBC.

A single strike carries with it numerous restrictions, but a channel receiving three strikes in a 90-day period will be removed from the platform entirely. One strike had been issued on TalkRadio's account before. This is after a discussion about the Conservative MP Tobias Ellwood.

YouTube has become very strict when it comes to misinformation about COVID-19. Two of the station's host, Mark Dolan and Julia Hartley-Brewer, regularly talk about their opinion about the lockdown and how against they are of the policies.

Right after YouTube reversed the suspension, the Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove appeared on Hartley-Brewer's show and talked about TalkRadio's right to criticize the decisions of the government during the pandemic.

YouTube's definition of medical misinformation has drawn criticisms even though it is similar to that of Twitter and Facebook. Commentators have noted that the rule prevents criticism of organizations that have changed their stance over the course of the pandemic.

For example, in March 2020 numerous platforms classed misinformation claims that wearing a mask could help prevent the spread of the virus, now those same platforms class as misinformation as they claim that wearing a mask does not help prevent the spread of COVID-19.

An Ofcom spokesperson stated that the decision to ban TalkRadio came from YouTube. Ofcom assess programs under their rules, and they take account of a broadcaster's right to freedom of expression, and the right of listeners to receive information and ideas.