Read more about Lawmakers call YouTube Kids a ‘wasteland of vapid’ content: Details here on Business Standard. A House subcommittee is investigating YouTube Kids, saying the Google-owned video feeds children inappropriate material in “a wasteland of vapid, consumerist content” so it can serve them ads
A House subcommittee is investigating Kids, saying the Google-owned video feeds children inappropriate material in “a wasteland of vapid, consumerist content” so it can serve them The inquiry comes despite agreeing to pay USD 170 million in 2019 to settle allegations that collected personal data on children without their parents’ consent. In a letter sent Tuesday to CEO Susan Wojcicki, the US House Oversight and Reform subcommittee on economic and consumer policy said YouTube does not do enough to protect kids from material that could harm them. Instead it relies on artificial intelligence and creators’ self-regulation to decide what videos make it on to the platform, according to the letter. And despite changes in the wake of the 2019 settlement, the letter notes, YouTube Kids still shows to children. But instead of basing it on kids’ online activity, it now targets it based on the videos they are watching. YouTube did not immediately respond to a message for comment. The congressional investigation comes a year into the pandemic that has shuttered schools and left parents who are working from home increasingly reliant on services such as YouTube to keep kids occupied.
