Abstract
The topic of this paper is the YouTube phenomenon. Following this popularity, it has become an instant tool to showcase homemade videos by Internet. It argues that some countries should forbid the popular video-sharing website around the world. There are three factors for this argument. The first reason is that YouTube directly impacts some countries’ traditional culture. Furthermore, it is a helper to spread the violent videos. Finally, YouTube will become a safe haven for infringers.
YouTube is “a video sharing website where users can upload, view and share video clips. It was created in February 2005 by three former PayPal employees. In October 2006, Google Inc. announced that it had reached a deal to acquire the company for US$1.65 billion in Google stock” (Wikipedia, 2005, para.1). Users can not only watch videos on the site, but also embed homemade videos to share over the world. It has quickly grown as the world’s largest sharing website on the Internet. With the popular phenomenon, YouTube corporation has already been translated into 18 versions to locate in different countries. “According to Nielsen NetRatings, the site serves almost 13 million users a month and serves up to 50 million videos each day” (Fisher, 2006, para.1). How does YouTube make a stir over the world? The answer is the video sharing stage onthe Internet. Due to the advance of technology in the 21st century, digital industries are paving a rapid way to channel all countries into a village globe. In the well-developed period, registered users can not only watch videos on YouTube, but also embed homemade videos to share over the world. With the popularity around the world, YouTube is also building an instant vessel to provide influential effects on the Internet. Following the powerful resources, meanwhile, it opens the disadvantages that cause a far-reaching cultural impact, becomes a helper to express the violent behavior, and infringes on copyright.
First of all, YouTube impacts some countries’ traditional culture. In “Governments target internet-phenomenon YouTube” the author states that since it was launched in 2005, the website has already been forbidden by a number of countries, among them China, Iran, Pakistan, Turkey, Burma and Brazil (2008). Those countries, which maintain traditional culture or have communist governments, resist the freedom of speech that destroys that principle. Because YouTube contains various messages, it directly impacts the traditional concept, undermines the foundation of culture, and distorts people’s thought. China, for example, is a typical communist government which controls their citizens by banning critical theories to maintain the traditional authority. If YouTube rapidly launches these videos which have a strong religious belief, they will not receive the multicultural concept. Because the traditional culture is accumulated over a long period, it stands for a country’s typical characteristics in their lives. With the culture effect, moreover, YouTube brings social interaction in every way. According to Sterling (2006), when a viewer browses YouTube unconsciously they are in a social interaction environment. It will cause a connection to affect people’s behaviors even if it is just a video. Because YouTube has already become an interaction website, users are easy liable to these free contents. Members will reflect the true social activities on YouTube and showcase their opinions. They post videos, view videos, comment on videos and share videos with this power. They are bringing a type of social interaction to change other people’s habits. This is why some governments ban the website, due to the huge infectious force. How does YouTube solve the cultural problem? Following the governments’ policies to reduce the critical and religious contents, it seems the best way to bridge the gap between government and culture. Moreover, building more educational information to cultivate their spirituality is another channel to open a new chapter in marketing around the world.
Secondly, violent videos hit YouTube. Because there is not considerable verification in the uploading processes, users can easily embed their homemade records on the website. Due to the unsafe management, this disadvantage is boiling to the surface of the globe. With the global popularity, registered users can freely post crime video clips to share on the website. And the influence runs riot across every country. It is acting as an advertising program to support the negative actions. For example, according to E. Wyatt (2006), some U.S. army soldiers posted war videos on YouTube that were related to the process of attacking Iraq, then it caused a huge stir around the world. Following this matter, YouTube became the helper to interrupt the peace of world. Besides, there are still many hurtful matters saturating the Internet that extend a number of serious effects to bruise all people, especially children. According to Charkes (2007), four high school students were charged by the Ossining N.Y. police last month, because police relied on a vital piece of evidence from YouTube, in which video images of a crime were posted by one of the teenagers after he used the camera on his cell phone to record an attack. Additionally, teenagers easily imitate and discuss these dangerous contents on campus. “ ‘People like to talk about who got beat up’, said Hogan High School 12th-grader Angelina Bee, expressing concerns about the use of camera cell phones on campus. ‘They say, Oh, did you see the video?’ ” (Burchyns, 2008, para.8). This matter reflects the fact that students have already distorted their concept by YouTube, because they think it is a fun and pervasive phenomenon to share violent behaviors. To solve these violent problems, therefore, the responsibilities start with parents setting up reasonable rules concerning what their children can and can’t do online. It is a foundation of social education by parents to build the first protection. YouTube, also, must strengthen the procedures for embedding contents and set serious policies with laws to shrink the number of criminal videos. When YouTube is led on the most popular website, it will be equipped with the important responsibility to overcome the harmful effects, to set a good example, and to provide an educational environment. If YouTube can not arrive at the standard, it must be closed.
The last element is that YouTube will become a safe haven for infringers. If people do not recognize this problem, it will diminish the innovation in society. Following the advance of technology, users who upload unauthorized materials on the website are easily unaware of the rightholders’ permission. Many of the videos posted to YouTube are posted without the permission of copyright owners. YouTube has always argued that it is not guilty of copyright infringement as long as it takes the videos down when notified of their existence. To prevent future troubles, “YouTube and Google have signed up a number of major copyright owners in recent weeks to agreements permitting usage of their material on the YouTube site. YouTube has signed usage deals with record labels Warner, Universal and Sony/BMG, as well as promotional deals with television network NBC” (Bailey, 2007, para.9). Moreover, according to Bailey (2007), Google notes that video identification is the next step in a long list of content policies. They have provided copyright owners so that they can more easily identify their content and manage it. Then, YouTube takes a few steps and precautions to educate users who embed any infringing contents on its website. Although it has already made a deal with the main entertaining companies, it is still easy for users to embed sharing video clips, which means they can not make sure they did not post infringing works on their blog or site. To resolve the problem of this unauthorized behavior, the best way is to upload materials from official channels, to showcase their own homemade videos, and offer some commentary or criticism that relates to it. “Many major rightholders, including CBS, have official YouTube channels that allow embedding” (Bailey, 2007, para.7). Besides these methods, YouTube can consider adjusting their policies to follow Microsoft. One reason Microsoft is more copyright-friendly than YouTube, is that it makes nearly all of its revenue not from online advertising but by selling copyrighted software. YouTube doesn't, so this has caused some commercial conflicts with other competitors.
Opponents of restricting videos on YouTube claim that it is unfair to ban the website in some countries, because it restricts people from deriving a gallery of multicultural knowledge from the site and losing the wonderful stage to show their ideas. In contrast, the argument does not illustrate the obvious purpose of governments to protect their citizens. When people absorb plentiful knowledge from YouTube, it still contains much pornography to pollute children’s spirituality. For example, according to Burchyns (2008), there was a high school student who imitated a video on YouTube and participated in sexual abuse with his classmate. Moreover, to express their thought does not always have positive effects, because those contents may include critical words to bruise a country’s reputation. According to Pollard (2006), a university student made a series of funny videos that related to beliefs of religion in Mexico, so it made a dent in his country’s reputation. This matter is not only a personal behavior, but also a national affliction. With these factors, YouTube still includes some influencing effects to navigate the world. To forbid the website is probably the effective way to escape these troubles.
In conclusion, with the multicultural impact, YouTube rapidly undermines the foundation of traditional culture and thought. It is directly to impact some countries’ beliefs. In some communist countries, also, one is not allowed the freedom of speech to destroy their policies. With the violent factor, YouTube has become instantly accessible to announce violent behavior and pollute children’s spirituality. People are liable to use these hurtful videos to imitate from them. With the copyright, it has slowly shrunk people’s efforts. The website will be a safe harbor to protect infringers, because it is easy to embed homemade videos that do not have a serious process before uploading them on YouTube. Those users who do not get the permission from copyright holders are the central factor to cause lawsuits in a competitive business. Following these influent ingredients, YouTube must be forbidden in the world.
References
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