Index

The page numbers in this index refer to the printed version of the book. Each link will take you to the beginning of the corresponding print page. You may need to scroll forward from that location to find the corresponding reference on your e-reader.

A

ABC television network, 76
“Abortion Man,” 75
abortion-related content, 86
Accenture, 317–18, 319
addictiveness of videos, 239
“The Adpocalypse: What it Means” (vlogbrothers), 289
advertising/advertisers
- and ad-friendly mandate for creators, 267–68, 274, 282–83
- algorithms’ role in placement of, 284, 285, 295
- banner ads, 73, 197, 200
- and boycotts, 283–90, 295, 300, 308, 329, 356
- and child-directed content, 173, 368, 394
- and child-exploitation debacle, 311–14
- and comments removed from kids’ videos, 371
- and copyright concerns, 108
- creators’ control over types of, 347
- and data shared with marketers, 284–85, 295
- dismantling of targeted, 390
- Dynamic Ad Loads (Dallas), 191–92, 194
- and eligibility thresholds for partner program, 329
- on Facebook, 252, 284
- and first profit of YouTube, 50
- and fraudsters, 284
- and Google Preferred, 210
- and home page of YouTube, 101
- Hurley’s reluctance to employ, 68
- increase in videos eligible for, 110
- on non-partner program channels, 391–92
- and partner program, 69–70, 163–64
- and pay-per-view business model, 133
- pop-up ads, 68, 73
- “pre-rolls,” 68
- and product placements, 67
- and Project MASA, 296, 313, 381
- and questionable/troubling content, 67, 75, 87, 255, 285–87, 296
- recent sales revenues, 391, 401
- removed from creators’ videos, 267–68, 314, 324
- Russia Today (RT), 340–41
- and sell-through rate, 108, 109–10
- shortage of slots for, 164
- skippable, 192
- and Spotlight (influencer campaigns), 248
- television model for, 110–11
- and user experience, 68
- and viewability/measurability, 284–85
- and Wojcicki, 195, 196, 197–98, 200, 213
AdWords, 51
Agha-Soltan, Neda, 137
Aghdam, Nasim Najafi, 331–35
Akilah Obviously, 261
al-Awlaki, Anwar, 214
Alchemy House, 256
algorithms of YouTube
- for ad placements, 284, 285, 295
- adult content from kids’ search terms, 306
- and advertiser-friendly content, 267
- and authoritative news sources, 325–26
- and changes to reward system, 155, 156–60, 164
- and clickbait, 150
- and comments vs. likes, 158, 276
- and conspiracy theories, 325–29
- and creators of color, 339
- creators’ understanding of, 297, 385
- and daily viewers, 252, 254
- disclosure of information about, 297, 398
- and Google Preferred content, 210
- and government regulation, 401
- and home-page of YouTube, 99–102, 135, 298
- Jho on improvements in, 394–95
- and keyword stuffing, 308–9
- and “Leanback” feature, 189–90
- limitations of, 255–56
- and machine learning, 191–92
- and Paul’s video of suicide victim, 323
- and PewDiePie, 275
- and presidential election of 2016, 272, 326
- and presidential election of 2020, 388
- and quality content, 175
- responsibility metric, 328
- screeners’ role in training, 320
- and skeptics of YouTube, 223
- skin-detection by, 255–56
- titles of content chosen for, 172
- watch time favored in, 156–60
- and YouTube Kids app, 238, 244–45
Allen & Company (investment bank), 49
Alphabet, 257
alt-right, 263, 269–70, 275, 277–78
Amazing Atheist, 223
Amazon, 210, 232–33, 253
Anderson, Erica, 350
Andreessen, Marc, 72
Android, 147, 177
animated videos, 241
Annoying Orange (YouTuber), 128, 140, 160
anonymous creators, 172–73
Anti-Defamation League (ADL), 281
antisemitism, 86, 275, 277, 281
Apple, 35, 56, 149, 176–77, 207–8
Arab Spring, 139, 140, 141–43, 145, 149, 164, 213
Argento, Dario, 383
Armstrong, Tim, 73
Arnspiger, Dianna, 334
artificial intelligence and neural networks
- content moderation with, 233–35, 292–93, 315, 399–400
- and DeepMind acquisition by Google, 230–31
- detection of red flags, 396
- and DistBelief system, 232
- and Google Brain, 231–35, 298
- Google’s application of, 233
- inability to precisely control or predict, 308
- “precision and recall” protocols for, 309
- and problematic content targeted at kids, 308–10
- in recommendation engine of YouTube, 233–35
- Reinforce program, 298
- Whittaker’s criticisms of, 355
- See also algorithms of YouTube; machine learning
Ask a Ninja, 69
ASMR videos, 7, 208
AT&T, 210, 286
atheists/atheism, 221–22, 223, 226
audience of YouTube
- ages of viewers, 86, 169
- and Arab Spring content, 145
- and audience is king credo, 254, 297
- average time on platform, 126
- and billion-hours-of-viewing goal, 228, 270
- and channels model, 127
- communities built by, 122
- complaints from users, 25
- and COVID-19 pandemic, 376, 377–78
- and cumulative hours of viewed footage, 154
- daily viewers, 252, 254
- emphasis on growth of, 91
- and initiative to recruit female viewers, 369
- and length of viewing sessions, 252 (see also watch time of audience)
- loyalty to YouTube, 394
- number of videos watched daily, 49, 140
- satisfaction ratings of, 296–97
- See also engagement of users
Auletta, Ken, 97
authoritative sources, 368, 388
Authors Guild, 48
auto-play function, 167
AwesomenessTV, 132, 210

B

“Baby Shark,” 5, 306
bad actors, 308, 316, 329. See also problematic/troubling content
“bad baby” videos, 304, 307, 308–9, 312
banner ads, 73, 197, 200
Bannon, Steve, 263
Barberini, Ed, 334–35
Bardan, Tala, 291–93, 359–60, 380–81
Bardin, Ariel, 252–53, 258, 339, 392
Barlow, John Perry, 37
BBC, 87, 109, 299, 307–8, 323
beauty gurus, 188–89
Beckett, Miles, 41, 42
Benator, Max, 181
Benjamin, Carl (Sargon of Akkad), 223, 264, 294–95, 299, 378–79
Bennett, Graham, 323–24, 384, 392–93
Berg, Jeben, 112–13
bestiality videos, 7
Biden, Joe, 387, 397, 398, 399
Bieber, Justin, 56, 57, 108
Big Boys (website), 21
Big Frame, 158–59
bigoted content, 86
billion-hours-of-viewing goal, 228, 270
Bisognin, Marzia, 218
Black Americans
- “Black Lives Matter,” 378
- as creators, 261–62, 293, 338–39, 378
- and recommendation engine applied to racism, 235
- and Yiannopoulos, 263–64
Black Ops project, 132–34
blip.tv, 78
Blitzer, Wolf, 137, 141
Blogger, 84
blogging, 58
BluCollection, 167
“Blurred Lines” (Thicke), 143–44
board of YouTube, 28, 30, 108
Bock, Laszlo, 179, 199, 203, 212–13, 349
bodybuilders, 256
boh3m3, 67
Bohner, Kate, 59
Bohrman, David, 89
Bolsonaro, Jair, 366, 371
Boorstin, Bob, 92, 143
borderline footage, 32, 309, 310, 368, 398. See also problematic/troubling content
Botha, Roelof, 29–30, 36, 50, 53
Boutin, Paul, 47
boycotts, advertisers, 283–90, 295, 300, 308, 329
brand and aesthetic of YouTube
- and “Our Brand Mission” video, 4–5
- and premium content ambition, 73–75, 126–27, 210, 391
- skateboarding bulldog as representative of, 77, 126, 139
Brandcast, 210
brand pages, 68
Breitbart News, 263, 273
Brexit, 264
Bridle, James, 312–13
Brin, Sergey
- and advertising, 108
- on collective memory function of YouTube, 384
- and Friday staff meetings, 81–82
- and Google’s acquisition of YouTube, 53, 54, 59
- and Google’s origins, 45
- marriage and divorce of, 197, 200–201
- at post-election staff meeting, 272, 273
- retirement of, 401
- and searchable TV database project, 96–97
- and shooting at San Bruno offices, 337
- and Snowden, 230
- and Viacom lawsuit, 99
- and Wojcicki, 199
Brodack, Brooke “Brookers,” 26–27, 40, 49, 98
Brolsma, Gary, 27
Brown, Dan, 120
Buckley, Michael, 115
bullying problem at YouTube, 262–63
Burnett, Mark, 124–25
Bush, George W., 82, 83
business unit of YouTube, 68–69
BuzzFeed, 190, 218
Byrne, Jamie, 181, 282–83, 287, 288, 290

C

Cain, Caleb, 193, 222, 225
Cambridge Analytica scandal, 341
Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, 243
Campbell, Bill, 202
Carl, Shay, 112, 278
Carle, John, 322
Carl’s Jr. promotions, 110, 111, 112
Carrico, Jennifer, 32
car videos, 58, 67, 99–100
CBS television network, 76
censorship, 84, 144, 215–16, 268, 340, 342. See also content moderation
channels
- featured on home-page, 158
- funding select, 132–35
- Google+ account required to manage, 179
- origins of, 127
Charlie Hebdo, 142–43, 144
Charlottesville rally, 380
Chaslot, Guillaume, 265–67, 325
Chen, Bing, 256
Chen, Steve
- background of, 19–20
- and board of YouTube, 28
- and cat content, 58
- and change of reward systems for creators, 155
- and comment section, 95
- creation of YouTube, 15, 17, 20–21, 26
- departure from YouTube, 90
- and early days of YouTube, 25
- and Google’s acquisition of YouTube, 52, 53, 55, 59
- and Google staff moved to YouTube, 59
- and growth of YouTube, 50
- health crisis of, 89–90
- and international relations, 84
- and Levine, 36
- life after YouTube, 389
- and move to San Bruno offices, 53
- and MySpace, 24
- on Oprah, 77
- and San Mateo offices, 28
- and software scaffolding of YouTube, 229
Chernikoff, Laura, 119
children
- and addictiveness of videos, 239
- advertising on videos for, 368, 394
- and age limits of YouTube, 169
- and animated videos, 241
- and auto-play function, 167
- “bad baby” videos, 307, 308–9, 312
- comments removed from videos for, 356, 371
- curation of content for, 394–95
- dedicated site for (proposed), 168–69
- and “Delicious”/ “Nutritious” content, 174–75, 305
- educational content prioritized for, 367
- exploitation of, 32, 85, 309, 311–16
- and “Finger Family” videos, 239–40
- growth in content for, 167
- income from channels, 396
- as kidfluencers, 395
- machine screening of content for, 243–44, 309–10
- and Mother Goose Club, 166–67, 173–74
- popularity of channels for, 394
- problematic content targeted at, 305–11
- and recommendation system, 236, 241
- regulation of children’s browsing of, 168
- and screen time, 174
- and violations of COPPA, 368
- of YouTube employees, 174
- and YouTube Kids app, 238–39, 243–45, 308, 311–12, 394–95
Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), 168–69, 368
China, 84, 341, 342, 349
Chism, Greg, 304–5, 307, 308, 310, 313, 314–15
“Chocolate Rain” (Zonday), 58, 94
Chrome browser, 147
CitizenTube, 58, 63
Clark, Jim, 15
Clay, Andrew Dice, 86
clickbait, 150, 151, 159, 298
Clinch, David, 139
Clinton, Bill, 35, 88
Clinton, Hillary, 89, 264, 269–70, 275, 343, 346
CNN, 88–89
Coca-Cola Company, 152
coding underlying YouTube, updating, 229
Cognizant, 319
The Collective, 114
collective memory function of YouTube, 384, 385
Comcast, 74
Comedy Central, 274
comments and comment section
- added as feature, 23
- algorithm’s weighting of, 158, 276
- and engagement-based payments, 337
- fake comments posted in, 149
- Google+ account required to make, 179
- improvements made to, 392
- mean-spirited or ugly, 94–96, 180
- removed from videos of children, 356, 371
- Zappin’s gaming of, 107
Communications Decency Act (1996), 35, 37, 342
communities on YouTube, 122
community managers. See coolhunters
compensation. See payment and income of creators
competing services, 78, 390, 391
complaints from users, 25, 268, 332–33
Condell, Pat, 226
Confinity, 18–20
Congress, U.S., 35, 345–47
conservatives
- as creators, 268–69
- Google accused of bias against, 269, 273, 340, 342, 345, 367
conspiracy theories, 245–46, 266, 325–29, 345, 346, 366, 375–76
Consumer Electronics Show (2006), 43
content creators. See creators
Content ID, 74
content moderation
- and ads paired with vile content, 286–87
- and Arab Spring, 142–43, 145
- “artistic” merit exemptions, 143–44
- and bad actors, 316
- and burying videos, 296
- and child-exploitation, 315
- and conspiracy theories, 245–46
- by contract employees, 317–20, 327, 349
- and copyright issues, 319–20, 327
- and educational/documentary exemptions, 86, 137, 216
- and Elsagate, 321
- and free-speech decisions, 142–44
- and graphic content, 317–18
- and Green Movement footage, 136–37
- guidelines for, 31–32, 85–88, 143–44
- and ISIS/Islamist extremism, 213–15, 320
- and labeling of debatable content, 180
- limited number of screeners in, 320–21
- machine filters for, 233–35, 292–93, 315, 399–400
- and mental health of screeners, 319, 321
- metrics of, 88
- missteps in, 320
- and newsworthiness standard, 137
- and New Zealand terrorist attack, 360
- and penalty box for troublesome creators, 235, 292, 296, 327, 346
- and problematic content targeted at kids, 309
- resources dedicated to, 86
- staff hired for, 31
- and terrorism-related content, 215–16
- and volume of videos loaded per minute, 215–16
- Wojcicki’s op-ed on, 399
contract employees, 317–20, 327, 349
ContraPoints account, 382–83, 385
contributors. See creators
CookieSwirlC channel, 240
cooking videos, 248
coolhunters (community managers)
- and comment section, 94
- curation role of, 56–57
- and makeup tutorials, 188–89
- and PewDiePie, 221
- replaced by algorithms, 99–102, 122, 399–400
- “Spotlight” page of, 208
- Stapleton’s move to, 207, 208
- trends tracking of, 208
Cooper, Anderson, 89
Cooperstein, Ezra, 112
copyright
- and acquisition offers, 51
- and advertising, 108
- and Content ID, 74
- creators’ evasion of filters, 149
- and Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA, 1998), 35, 36, 37
- early days of YouTube, 25–26, 52
- in Europe, 365, 371
- and Johnson’s content, 120
- Pozner’s copyright claims, 327
- screeners’ involvement in, 319–20, 327
- and takedown requests, 33–34
- three-strikes rule, 138
- and Viacom negotiations/lawsuit, 61, 62, 97–98
Cosmic Panda (website redesign), 158
costumes, popularity of, 305–7
Coulter, Ann, 86
counter-speech, 216, 217
Couric, Katie, 98
COVID-19 pandemic, 374–76, 377–78, 385, 390, 397, 399
Craven, Wes, 101
Creative Artists Agency (CAA), 72
Creative Lab of Google, 147, 207–8
creators
- and ad-friendly mandate, 267–68, 274, 282–83
- and Adpocalypse (boycott), 288–90, 300, 310
- ads removed from content of, 267–68
- and algorithms of YouTube, 297
- analytics dashboard of, 157
- anonymous, 172–73
- Black creators, 261–62, 293, 338–39, 378
- and bullying problem at YouTube, 262–63
- burnout of, 385, 392
- camaraderie among, 40
- and celebrity status, 40–42, 248 (see also stars/celebrities of YouTube)
- and changes to algorithm, 155, 156–60, 164
- and comments removed from kids’ videos, 371
- commercial agreements of, 67
- complaints from, 268, 332–33
- conservative and right-wing, 268–69
- control over types of ads, 347
- and COVID-19 pandemic, 390
- and culture of YouTube, 254–55
- data provided to, 117
- departures from YouTube, 257, 385–86
- difficulty of work for, 254–55, 256–57
- dollar-sign indicators for, 268
- efforts to organize, 288, 393
- and egalitarian claims of YouTube, 393
- endemic, 248
- flaunting/bending rules, 149
- frustrations of, 256
- and grants from YouTube, 112, 134
- and harassment policies, 366–67
- increasing success of, 78–79
- lines between persona and performer, 280
- mass deletion of accounts (Elsagate), 314
- merchandising and sponsorship opportunities, 392
- and Originals series of YouTube, 253–54, 261
- penalty box for troublesome, 235, 292, 296, 327, 346
- people of color as, 40, 159, 339
- playbook for, 129
- recruited to MCNs, 182–83
- rewarding trusted, 368
- and “Rewind 2018” video, 351–52
- and rights to material, 133
- and rival video services, 78
- and shooting at San Bruno offices, 331–35
- side hustles of, 382
- term origins, 130
- transgender, 382–83
- trust deficit growing in, 160
- trust in judgement of, 323–24
- video responses between, 39
- volume of uploaded material, 6, 49, 140, 215–16, 389
- and watch time of users, 157, 158–60
- and Wojcicki, 261, 373
- women’s experience as, 303
- and YouTube Creator Summit, 250–51, 253, 262, 289–90
- See also partner program; payment and income of creators; stars/celebrities of YouTube; specific creators
“Creators for Change” program, 382
Creator Summit, 250–51, 253, 262, 289–90
Credit Suisse, 51–52
Crowder, Steven, 366, 367, 370
Cruikshank, Lucas (Fred Figglehorn), 65–66, 69, 77–78, 131, 169
“Crush On Obama” (Key of Awesome), 88
Cruz, Ted, 342, 367
cryptocurrencies, 390
Cuban, Mark, 49
curation team. See coolhunters
cyberporn, 168

D

Daily Mail, 242, 286
The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, 24
The Daily Stormer, 277, 278, 279
Daly, Carson, 40, 49
Damore, James, 301–3
Daniels, Susanne, 280
“Danny Diamond Gay Bar” (Zappin), 106
dating site, early visions of YouTube as, 17–18, 22
Dauman, Philippe, 62, 97
Dawkins, Richard, 223
Dawson, Shane, 119
Day, Mark, 39, 57, 102
DeepMind, 230–31
DeFranco, Philip, 112, 268, 290
de Kerchove, Gilles, 216–17
DeKort, Michael, 87
deletion of videos, 99, 296, 314, 379
“Delicious”/“Nutritious” content, 174–75, 305
Demand Media, 157
“demonetized” creators, 268, 310
denialism, 366, 399
Depardieu, Gérard, 266
detergent pods, consuming, 324
Diamond, Danny. See Zappin, Danny
Diamond Factory, 107, 111–12, 149. See also Zappin, Danny
Dickson, Marion, 10
Digg, 95
Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA, 1998), 35, 36, 37, 61, 99
Disney
- content on YouTube, 242–43
- and Frozen (film), 241–42
- Maker Studios acquired by, 219, 242
- and PewDiePie/Kjellberg, 219, 278
- and success of YouTube model, 210
- YouTube’s attempt to partner with, 130
- and Zappin, 107
DisneyCollectorBR, 171–73, 174, 239, 242
DistBelief, 232
diversity, 301, 302, 344
do-it-yourself crafting, 57
dollar-sign indicators for creators, 268
domain for YouTube.com, 16
Donahue, Kevin, 28–29, 66–67, 168–69
Donaldson, Jimmy, 353
Donovan Data Systems, 74
Donovan, Lisa, 106–7, 186
Dorsey, Jack, 397
DoubleClick Incorporated, 70–71, 75, 197, 198, 257, 284
Douek, Evelyn, 398
Downs, Juniper, 281
doxing problem at YouTube, 262–63
DreamWorks, 210
Drudge Report, 270
Drummond, David, 215, 216
Ducard, Malik, 378
Dynamic Ad Loads (Dallas), 191–92, 194

E

eBaum’s World, 21
eBay, 52
echo chambers of YouTube, 265–66, 299
edgelords, 275–76, 383
EduTubers, 170, 245, 246
egalitarianism prioritized at YouTube, 164, 180, 194
Egypt, 137–38, 141–42, 143
Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), 37, 215
Elizabeth II, Queen of Great Britain, 92, 126
Elsa, people dressed as, 305–7, 309, 312
Elsagate, 314, 321
employees of YouTube
- contract employees, 317–20, 327, 349
- diversity hiring in, 301
- as parents, 174
- and perks at YouTube offices, 148
- poached from Yahoo, 52
- and Wojcicki, 211–13
engagement of users
- emphasis placed on, 154, 158–59 (see also watch time of audience)
- and machine learning applied to advertising, 191
- payments based on (Moneyball proposal), 337–38, 341
- strain related to goals for, 203
- See also comments and comment section; likes
Equals Three (=3) production company, 120
Europe, 340, 365, 371
European Parliament, 215–16
EvanTubeHD, 237–38
Ezarik, Justine (iJustine), 40, 78, 95, 110, 119, 392

F

Facebook
- advertising on, 252, 284
- and Arab Spring, 142
- boycotts of, 382
- Cambridge Analytica scandal, 341
- Chen’s employment with, 24
- competition of YouTube with, 264–65
- and COVID-19 misinformation, 397, 398
- criticisms of, 366
- engagement of users, 154
- as global public square, 142
- growth/popularity of, 93, 138, 146, 284
- “Like” button, 138
- as media company, 285–86
- “move fast and break things” motto of, 309
- and New Zealand terrorist attack, 10, 358, 359
- political quagmires of, 340, 391, 397
- recruitment of creators, 390
- and Russian agents, 326–27, 340
- Russia’s blocking of, 397
- and Sandberg, 195
- screeners at, 319
- and Stapleton, 81
- Steyer’s distrust in, 402
- struggles for relevancy, 6
- and Trump, 370
- users leaving platform, 394
- and video, 210, 251, 264–65
- YouTube clips shared on, 251
faceless channels, 171–72
“fake news,” 399
fakes on YouTube, 144–45
“false flags,” 326
fashion industry, 189
Fast Company, 299–300
Federal Communications Commission (FCC), 168, 224
Federal Trade Commission (FTC), 168, 243, 368, 394
“Feet for Hands” (Smosh), 67
feminism, 223, 224, 225
fetish, borderline, 309, 310
Figglehorn, Fred (Cruikshank), 65–66, 69, 77–78, 131, 169
financials of YouTube
- crossing $1 billion in revenue, 126
- and expectation of profitability, 93–94
- and first profit of YouTube, 50
- funding from Sequoia Capital, 29–30, 50
- and Google’s priorities for YouTube, 68
- impact of changed algorithm on, 159
- and monetization of YouTube, 66–67, 93–94, 96
- money lost by YouTube, 93
- and PewDiePie, 8–9
- revenue goals of Wojcicki, 252, 382
- and videos eligible for advertising, 110
“Finger Family” videos, 239–40, 312
Finland, mass shooting in (2007), 64
flagged content, 165
Flannery, Michele, 94, 95, 101
Flash, 21, 24
flat-earth videos, 299, 328
Flickr, 17, 18
Flinders, Mesh, 41–42
Floyd, George, 378, 384
Foley, James, decapitation of, 213, 215
Forbes, 29
founders of YouTube, 26. See also Chen, Steve; Hurley, Chad; Karim, Jawed
4chan, 86, 225
Fox News, 97–98, 224, 270, 387
FPSRussia (Myers), 181–82
Frazzledrip, 346
Freak Family, 312
freddiew, 38–40, 116. See Wong, Freddie
“Fred on Halloween” (October 30, 2006), 65
Fred: The Movie, 131
Freedomain Radio, 192–94, 357–58. See also Molyneux, Stefan
freedom of speech, 143–44, 180, 235, 236, 262, 302–3
Friendster, 15–16
Frozen (film), 241–42, 306, 309–10
Fuchs, Ina, 354, 372
“Full interview: Lauren Southern and Stefan Molyneux” (Newshub), 344–45
Fullscreen, 180–81, 182–83, 184

G

Gaga, Lady, 101
Gahan, Brendan, 67
Gamergate, 225, 263, 264, 293
Game Theorists, 252
“Gangnam Style” video, 5
Gates, Bill, 50
gateway videos, 234
Gawker, 126
Gay Pride festivities, 347
“Gender Critical” (ContraPoints), 383
Ghonim, Wael, 141–42
Giertz, Simone, 246
Gilbert, Dean, 110, 129, 150, 164, 202
Gillette, Heather, 30–33, 53, 55, 92, 99
Glick, Brian, 102
globalists, 267
Gmail, launch of, 18
goals setting of YouTube, 152–54
Golin, Josh, 243, 244
Goodell, Roger, 129
Goodrow, Cristos, 153–54, 180, 203, 270–71, 298, 397
Google
- accused of political bias, 269, 273, 340, 342, 345, 367
- acquisition of YouTube, 44, 51–55, 59, 198
- advertising business of, 195, 196, 345–46, 377, 401
- and Alphabet, 257
- amateur videos hosted by, 18, 21
- ambitions of, 147
- and Android, 177
- antitrust case against, 365, 401
- and Arab Spring, 139, 141–42
- Blogger purchased by, 84
- and “Borg” references, 179
- Brain team at, 231–32
- business model of, 6
- Chrome browser, 147
- conflicts between YouTube and fiefdoms of, 177–78
- and content moderation at YouTube, 86, 88
- and COVID-19, 375, 377
- Creative Lab of, 147, 207–8
- culture of, 59, 82
- and DeepMind acquisition, 230–31
- diversity hiring in, 301, 302
- “Don’t be evil” creed of, 84
- Dory system of, 82
- DoubleClick purchased by, 71, 75, 197, 198, 284
- and Europe, 215
- as gatekeeper/moderator of speech, 83–85
- Gmail launched by, 18
- and Googlegeist, 3
- and “Googley” traits, 212, 235
- and Hurley, 92
- Indian Springs retreat, 2–5, 7, 8, 10–11, 356
- innovations of, 6
- leadership at, 178
- and linking to videos outside of YouTube, 108–9
- lobbying efforts of, 340
- and losses associated with YouTube, 97
- and machine learning, 191
- maternity leave policy of, 198, 244
- as media company, 285–86
- mission statement of, 45
- “moonshot factory” (Google X), 147, 231
- music service of, 177, 382
- and “next billion users,” 341, 342, 353
- and objectives and key results, 151
- pay inequities at, 302
- and Pentagon deal, 341–42, 349, 355
- and PewDiePie, 9, 278
- political identity of, 83–84
- and “precision and recall” protocols, 309
- and presidential campaign of 2016, 269
- and Rubin’s exit package, 348–49
- sales revenue of, 3, 146
- screeners at, 319
- search engine of, 45
- “sell-through” rate of, 108, 109–10
- sexism at, 301
- share price of, 93, 286, 377
- and 10x decree, 147
- and Trayvon Martin, 226
- and Trump, 272–73
- vision of, 45–46
- walkout (2017), 2, 3–4, 348–50, 351, 373–74
- women in leadership at, 195–96
Google+, 145, 178–80, 251, 345
Google Books, 46
Google Brain, 231–32, 298
Google History, 266
“Google Memo Fired Employee Speaks Out!” (Molyneux), 302
Google Preferred, 210, 239, 311
“Google’s Ideological Echo Chamber” (Damore), 301–2
Google Video, 43–48, 51, 54, 58–59, 96–97
Google X (“moonshot factory”), 147, 231
Gore, Al, 98
Gower, Patrick, 344–45
Grace, Kathleen, 201, 256
Grand, Victoria, 137, 144
graphic content, 317–18
Great Britain, 87
Green, Hank
- and Adpocalypse (boycott), 288–89
- and Benjamin’s behavior at VidCon, 294–95
- on challenge of being professional creator, 254
- content for children, 245
- and COVID-19, 375
- and EduTuber genre, 170
- on financial support for creators, 403
- on gay conversion therapy ads, 347
- on Google+, 179
- and grants from YouTube, 134
- and Internet Creators Guild, 288, 393
- on power wielded by YouTube/Wojcicki, 376, 402
- relationship with YouTube, 288
- and sense of community, 122
- successes of, 288
- and VidCon, 117–19
- vlogbrothers, 118, 289
- Wojcicki’s interview with, 375–76, 402–3
Green, John
- content for children, 245
- and EduTuber genre, 170
- and grants from YouTube, 134
- and Hughes, 261
- and sense of community, 122
- and VidCon, 117–18
Green, Joshua, 263
Green Revolution, 136–38
GridMonster (Nilsen), 247, 386
Grokster, 60
Grove, Steve
- on deployment of machines, 400
- and Little’s Storyful, 139
- move to Google+, 145
- as news and politics editor, 57–58, 63
- and Obama/Clinton interviews, 88, 89, 259–60
The Guardian, 285, 325
Guitar Hero, 40
guns, content featuring, 181–82, 309

H

Hagey, Keach, 61
Hammer, MC, 28–29
“hands channels,” 171–72
Hannity, Sean, 270
harassment policies, 366–67
Harper, Sadia, 56, 57, 101, 102
Harry Potter fandom, 118
hate speech, 86, 180, 285, 366–67, 379–81, 382
“haul” videos, 189, 248
Havas (ad agency), 285
Hecox, Ian, 67
hip-hop artists, 48
Hitler, Adolf, 277–78
hoaxes, 144–45
Hoffner, Jordan, 72–73, 75
Hogg, David, 326
Hollywood, 72–75, 129
The Hollywood Reporter, 113
Holocaust deniers, 215, 366
Holocaust Remembrance Day, 277
home page of YouTube
- algorithm-driven content on, 99–102, 135, 298
- and coolhunters/curators, 56–57, 94–95, 99–102, 122
- features added to, 158
- Trending tab on, 299, 321, 323, 326, 329
- views of videos on, 298–99
Hot or Not, 16, 17–18
how-to videos, 157
h3h3 channel, 305–6
Hudson News, 132
Hughes, Akilah, 40, 261–62, 293–95, 378–79
Hulu, 76
Hunt, Jena, 332
Hunter, Melissa, 240, 314
Hurley, Chad
- and audience growth, 91
- background of, 18–20
- and board of YouTube, 28
- and business model of YouTube, 108
- Chen’s departure from YouTube, 90
- and comment section, 95
- and content moderation, 87
- copyright concerns of, 25
- creation of YouTube, 15–18
- departure from YouTube, 109
- emphasis on user experience, 68, 109
- and Gillette, 30–31
- and Google’s acquisition of YouTube, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 59
- and growth of YouTube, 50
- and leadership at YouTube, 90, 93, 211
- and Levine, 36
- life after YouTube, 390
- and move to San Bruno offices, 52–53
- and Obama/Clinton interviews, 89
- on Oprah, 77, 92
- and paying content creators, 67, 68, 70
- personality of, 91–92
- on political content, 58
- publicity work of, 92
- and Queen of Great Britain, 92, 126
- and San Mateo offices, 28
- successes of, 91–92, 107–8
- at Sun Valley summit, 48–50
- and Viacom lawsuit, 99
Hussein, Saddam, 137

I

Iger, Bob, 219, 278
iJustine (Ezarik), 40, 78, 95, 110, 119, 392
illegal activity, content glorifying, 87
immigrants/immigration, 358, 380
Impaulsive podcast, 383
Inconvenient Truth (Gore), 98
India, 85, 368–69, 393, 399
influencers, 67, 248
InfoWars, 235–36, 267, 269, 367
Innocence of Muslims (film), 142–43, 144
innovations of YouTube and Google, 6
Instagram, 250, 391, 398
intellectual property, 35
intelligence desk, 356–57, 376
internet
- celebrities on, 218
- growth in traffic, 34–35
- as “marketplace of ideas,” 144
- memes on, 218–19
- regulation of, 35, 168
Internet Creators Guild, 288, 393
iPhones, 56, 146, 176–77, 284
Iran and Green Revolution, 136–38
ISIS, 213–16, 234–35, 285, 343, 345, 356
Islam, 142–43, 226, 235, 264
Islamist extremism, 214, 234–35, 291–93, 320, 372, 380, 381. See also ISIS
Israel, 141

J

Jackson, Michael, 138
Jezebel, 75
Jho, Harry
- and advertising on channel, 173
- on algorithms of YouTube, 394–95
- and animated videos, 241
- and “bad baby” as search term, 307
- and competing content, 167, 169, 173–74, 239–40
- income from channel, 173, 394
- and Mother Goose Club, 166–67, 173–74, 239
- support from YouTube, 166, 167
Jho, Sona, 166, 167, 239, 307, 394
Jobs, Steve, 56, 146, 176
joeB, 33
Johnson, Ray William, 119–20, 121, 185
Johnston, Kirsty, 1, 358
joke, threat, obvious mantra, 209–10
Jones, Alex, 235–36, 267, 273, 325, 367
Justin.tv, 78

K

Kaji, Loann, 237
Kaji, Ryan, 237–38, 240, 306, 395–96
Kaji, Shion, 237–38
Kamangar, Salar
- and channels model, 127, 128
- egalitarianism prioritized by, 164
- and free-speech decisions, 143
- and Google+, 178
- and Google’s acquisition of YouTube, 51
- and iPhone app for YouTube, 176
- leadership at YouTube, 125–26, 150, 201–2, 211
- and linking to videos outside of YouTube, 108
- and music service of Google, 177
- and Page, 150
- and playground equipment at offices, 148
- and production studio proposal, 201
- and profitability of YouTube, 93–94
- retirement of, 203
- at VidCon, 139–40
Karim, Jawed
- background of, 20
- and copyright concerns, 25
- creation of YouTube, 15, 16–17, 21–22, 26
- on current challenges of YouTube, 389
- departure of, 26
- and Google+ accounts, 179
- and Google’s acquisition of YouTube, 55
- and motto of YouTube, 22–23
Katz, Scott, 112, 113–14
Kavanaugh, Lance, 144
Kay, Olga, 248–50, 254–55, 256–57
Keane, Patrick, 75, 199
The Key of Awesome, 88
keyword stuffing, 308–9
Khan Academy, 170, 175
kidfluencers, 395
Kidvid rules, 168
Kinder Eggs, 171, 173
King, David, 62–63, 91–92
King, Rodney, 61
The King of Content (Hagey), 61
Kirkbride, Ivana, 134
Kissinger, Henry, 92
Kjellberg, Felix (PewDiePie)
- Comedy Central show offered to, 274
- earnings of, 8–9, 220–21, 279
- and edgelords, 276
- frustration with YouTube, 273–74
- and Google’s acquisition of YouTube, 161
- and Maker Studios, 219, 274
- and origins of PewDiePie, 123
- and “Pew News,” 352
- relationship with YouTube restored, 8, 371–73
- response to scandal, 278, 279–80
- on Time’s list of influential people, 274
- See also PewDiePie
Klein, Erik, 19, 25, 59
Klein, Ethan, 305–6
Klein, Hila, 305
Koli, Prajakta, 369
Krasinski, John, 377
Kravitz, Noah (kravvykrav), 78–79
Kreiz, Ynon, 186
Kyncl, Robert
- background of, 128–29
- as chief business officer, 242
- at Creator Summit, 289
- and culture of YouTube, 150
- on economic impact of YouTube, 391
- and grants funding hi-def content, 132–35
- and indecision of leadership, 152
- leadership style of, 130
- media partnerships pursued by, 130–31
- on music service, 241–42
- and Netflix’s original series, 253
- and Next New Networks, 130
- and objectives and key results, 151
- and PewDiePie scandal, 281
- praised by stars of YouTube, 392
- and Robbin’s network, 132
- Russian goodwill tour (2013), 341
- on Wojcicki, 244
- and Zappin, 185

L

Laatsch, Brandon, 115–16
Larian, Isaac, 240
Las Vegas mass shooting (2017), 310, 326
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, 97–98, 220
laundry detergent pods, consumption of, 7
“Lazy Sunday” (Saturday Night Live), 33–34, 40, 44, 67
leadership at YouTube
- and CEO title, 211
- Chen’s departure, 90
- concerns about stasis, 149, 151
- and content for children, 174–75
- and costume tradition, 244
- goal setting of, 152–53
- lack of minorities in, 355
- and stars of YouTube, 392
- Wojcicki’s ascension, 202, 210–11
- work hard, play hard culture of, 150–51
- See also Chen, Steve; Hurley, Chad; and other specific individuals, including Wojcicki, Susan
“Leanback” feature, 189–90
“Let’s Play” genre, 161–62. See also video games
Levchin, Max, 19
Levine, Zahavah, 34–38, 62, 63, 99, 177
Levy, Steve, 196
Lewis, Becca, 343
LGBTQ creators and content, 282–83, 290, 347, 350
Libya, 143
lifestyle category, 189, 248
“Like a Girl” (P&G’s Always ad), 284
likes (thumbs up/down indicators), 95, 158, 276, 296, 337, 389
Limbaugh, Rush, 224, 225
LisaNova, 106–7, 111, 219, 249
Little Loca, 39
Little, Mark, 138–39, 141, 144, 145, 189–90
L.O.L. Surprise! (toy), 240–41
London Bridge terrorist attack (2017), 292, 296
lonelygirl15, 41–42, 50, 65–66, 67, 69
longevity, human, 147
“Loose Change” (9/11 “truther” film), 245
Lorde, Audre, 355
Los Angeles office of YouTube, 129–30
Lucas, George, 50
lunch doodles with Mo, 5

M

machine learning
- with advertising, 190–92
- downsides of, 234
- improvements made by, 233–34
- and skin-detection, 255–56
- YouTube’s reliance on, 229, 234
- See also artificial intelligence and neural networks
Machinima
- and changes to reward system, 157–58
- contracts of, 162, 183–84
- and grants from YouTube, 134
- origins of, 124
- partner program gamed by, 124–25, 127
- and PewDiePie, 125, 162
- recruitment of creators, 164, 183
- users raided by Maker Studios, 162
Mad Men (television show), 73, 130
Maker Studios
- atmosphere of, 113
- channels of, 162
- Disney’s acquisition of, 219, 242
- and grants from YouTube, 112, 134
- and hands only channels, 171–72
- and the Jhos’ Mother Goose Club, 173
- and Johnson-Zappin spat, 185
- and Kay’s vlogging, 249
- leadership at, 185, 186
- and PewDiePie/Kjellberg, 162–63, 219, 274, 278
- recruitment of talent, 121
- successes of, 113
- toy review content of, 242
- Zappin’s lawsuit against, 186
- “ZOMBIES TAKE OVER YOUTUBE!!!!!!,” 113
- See also Zappin, Danny
makeup application videos, 78, 188–89, 248
Martin, Trayvon, 226, 265
mash-ups, 122
mass shootings
- ads removed from content about, 310
- conspiracy theories around, 326
- and copyright claims, 327
- and denialism, 366
- Finland (2007), 64
- Las Vegas (2017), 310, 326
- New Zealand (2019), 1–2, 10, 11, 357–61, 372
- Parkland, Florida (2018), 326, 329
- Sandy Hook (2012), 327
- YouTube’s San Bruno offices (2018), 330–35
MatPat (Patrick), 252–53, 280, 298, 377, 392
Maxcy, Chris, 29, 30, 36
Mayer, Marissa, 45, 195–96
Maza, Carlos, 366
MCN Fullscreen, 210
media companies
- and grants from YouTube, 133–34
- Molyneux’s warnings about, 260
- and PewDiePie scandal, 279–80
- and rights to material, 133
- standards relating to children, 168
- YouTube’s desire to partner with, 74–75, 129, 130–34
medically dubious videos, 366, 375
Mehrotra, Shishir
- and advertising, 110
- background of, 109
- and content for children, 174–75
- departure from YouTube, 211–12
- desire for wheeled desks, 148–49
- egalitarianism prioritized by, 164
- and financial issues of YouTube, 96–97
- on joke, threat, obvious mantra, 209–10
- and leadership at YouTube, 201–2
- and machine learning applied to advertising, 191
- and sell-through problem, 109–10
- and shortage of advertising slots, 164
- and watch time of users, 154–55
- and Wojcicki’s CEO appointment, 201–2, 203
memes, internet, 218–19
Mengerink, Matthew, 228–29, 233–35
“A Message from Chad and Steve” (October 9, 2006), 55
Metacafe, 21
#MeToo movement, 339–40, 349
Meyer, Mickey, 113
Microsoft, 21, 35, 96
“mike m,” 326
Miller, Rich, 315
Minecraft, 5, 297–98, 373
Mischel, Walter, 197
misinformation, combating, 386–88, 396–97, 399, 400. See also conspiracy theories
misogyny, 223
Missglamorazzi. See Nilsen, Ingrid
Mohan, Neal
- background of, 257–58
- and child-exploitation allegations, 313, 315
- at Creator Summit, 289
- on equality in treatment, 371
- on government takedown requests, 399
- and New Zealand terrorist attack (2019), 360
- on payment thresholds for creators, 329
- and policing efforts of YouTube, 310–11, 321
- on spotting threats, 356
- and Trust and Safety team, 321
Molyneux, Stefan
- and Damore, 301–2
- deletion of videos, 379
- emergence of, 192–94
- promise of sharing secret knowledge, 269
- rhetoric of, 224–25, 226
- on Rogan’s show, 343
- and terrorist behind New Zealand attack, 357–58
- on tour, 343–45
- on Trump, 260–61
Mommy and Gracie channel, 240
monetization. See financials of YouTube; partner program
Moonbug Entertainment, 395
“moonshot factory” (Google X), 147, 231
Moonves, Les, 44, 76
Mora-Blanco, Julie, 32, 33, 59, 86, 88, 137, 179–80
Moritz, Michael, 30
Morris, Kevin, 72
Mother Goose Club, 166–67, 173–74, 239. See also Jho, Harry; Jho, Sona
motto of YouTube, 22–23
MrBeast, 353
MTV, 60
Muller, Derek, 297, 385
multichannel networks (MCNs)
- ad operations seized from, 251
- contracts of, 183, 255
- decrease in influence of, 393
- explosion of, 181
- and the Jhos’ Mother Goose Club, 173
- kingmaker power of, 164
- and money made by creators, 183–84
- origins of, 127–28
- recruitment of creators, 164, 182–83
- scaling of, 182–83
- Strompolos’s Fullscreen, 181
Murdoch, Rupert, 132, 224, 287
Murrow, Edward R., 136, 141
Musical.ly, 393
music industry, 35, 38, 108
music/musicians on YouTube, 94, 95, 149, 241–42
Myers, Kyle (FPSRussia), 181–82
MySpace, 24, 47, 51, 60, 91
MysteryGuitarMan (Penna), 158–59, 220

N

Nabi, Haji-Daoud, 1, 359
Napster, 35
Nation, Kaleb, 184
National Enquirer, 270
National Security Agency (NSA), 215
Nazis/neo-Nazis
- and advertising on YouTube, 285, 286, 287
- and PewDiePie, 277–78
- prevalence of footage on YouTube, 226
- removal of content glorifying, 366
NBC television network, 33–34, 293
Neistat, Casey, 290, 310, 392
Nerdfighters, 118, 126, 223
Netflix, 74, 126, 131, 210, 253, 320
networks. See multichannel networks
neutrality emphasized at YouTube, 208–9
news content on YouTube, 136–41, 142–45, 275, 325–26, 388
News Corp, 51, 60, 198
Newsweek, 36
Newton, Casey, 319
“New World Order” theories, 267
The New York Times
- criticisms of YouTube, 338
- on Disney’s acquisition of Maker Studios, 219
- on impact of medically dubious videos, 366
- on lonelygirl15 ruse, 50
- on recommendation system, 298
- on Rubin’s sexual misconduct, 348–49
- on Stapleton, 2, 354–55
- on Wojcicki, 203, 211
New Zealand terrorist attack (2019), 1–2, 10, 11, 357–61, 372
Next New Networks, 129
Nickelodeon, 131, 169, 293
Nielsen and Facebook, 251
nigahiga, 39, 110
Nightmare Fuel, 7–8
Nilsen, Ingrid (Missglamorazzi; TheGridMonster)
- coming out video of, 282
- concerns about online invective, 262–63
- departure from YouTube, 385–86
- makeup application videos of, 188–89
- and Obama interview, 259
- recruited by Vessel, 251
- Vlogmas series of, 247–48, 386
- and walkout at Google (2017), 350
- at YouTube Creator Summit, 250
North Korean government, 287
Nussbaum, Emily, 275

O

Oakley, Peter, 57
Obama administration, 143
Obama, Barack, 88–89, 193–94, 213, 259–60, 326
Obama, Michelle, 287
Obama Girl, 94, 129
“objectives and key results” (OKRs), 151–52, 175
O’Brien, Trevor, 156–58
obscene content, 100
O’Connell, Dan, 44
O’Connor, Jennie, 337, 356–57, 359–60, 371, 380
Oliver, John, 244
O’Neal, Shaquille, 133
One America News Network, 387, 388
Orgill, April, 314
Orgill, Davey, 314
Originals series of YouTube, 253–54, 261, 293
original video posted to YouTube, 21–22
origins of YouTube, 15–18, 20–23, 26
“Our Brand Mission” video of YouTube, 4–5
outages, service, 34

P

P&G, 283–84, 286
Padilla, Anthony, 67
Page, Larry
- and Alphabet, 257
- aphorisms/Larry-isms of, 147
- on artificial intelligence, 230–33
- and Brin’s divorce, 201
- as CEO, 146–47
- and daily viewers, 252
- and Friday staff meetings, 81–82
- Google invented by, 45
- and Google’s acquisition of YouTube, 54
- and Google Video, 43, 44
- and Kamangar, 150
- on loading speed of videos, 151
- management council of (“L Team”), 177
- and Mehrotra, 202
- and politics, 230
- at post-election staff meeting, 272
- and Ramaswamy-Wojcicki dispute, 200, 203
- retirement of, 401
- and Rose’s interview at TED Conference, 229–31
- and Rubin’s exit package, 348–49
- and searchable TV database project, 96–97
- and sports, 129
- 10x decree of, 147
- and Vessel, 251
- and Viacom lawsuit, 99
- and Wojcicki, 198, 199
Pakistan, 143
Pan, Yu, 21, 24–25
Panchapakesan, Venkat, 228
Papadopoulos, Christina, 194
Parkland, Florida, mass shooting in (2018), 326, 329
partner program
- and algorithm changes, 155, 156–60, 164
- creators added in 2020, 382
- eligibility thresholds for, 329
- launch of, 70
- Machinima’s gaming of, 125
- opened to all creators, 163–65, 184
- origins of, 66–70
- special site access of, 124–25
- and taxes, 120
- Wong’s attraction to, 115
- and Zappin’s Maker Studios, 112
- See also payment and income of creators
Patrick, Matthew (MatPat), 252–53, 280, 298, 377, 392
Patriot Act (2001), 82
Paul, Jake, 384
Paul, Logan, 321–24, 338, 352, 383–84
payment and income of creators
- and Adpocalypse (boycott), 288–90, 300, 310
- and algorithm changes, 159
- and creator economy of YouTube, 5, 258, 390, 391
- “demonetized” creators, 268, 310
- eligibility thresholds for, 329
- engagement based (Moneyball proposal), 337–38, 341
- equalized across creators, 329
- inconsistent levels of, 173
- inequities in, 258
- as innovation of YouTube, 6
- of kidfluencers, 396
- as life changing, 115, 304
- made available to everyone, 163–65
- in most recent years, 391
- and multichannel networks, 183–84
- origins of program for, 66–70
- by other social media platforms, 390, 391
- of PewDiePie/Kjellberg, 8–9, 220–21, 279
- as privilege, not right, 324
- redesign of compensation system, 258
- reduced without explanation, 255
- and right-wing content, 227
- and shooting at San Bruno offices, 337
- and side hustles of creators, 382
- slashed for creators of kid content, 368, 394
- system managing, 255
- unrelated to advertising, 392
- and Zappin’s Maker Studios, 112
PayPal, 19, 20, 24–25, 52
pay-per-view business model, 130–31, 132–33
pedophiles, 313, 356, 371
penalties applied to users, 31
“penalty box” for troublesome creators, 235, 292, 296, 327, 346
Penna, Joe (MysteryGuitarMan), 158–59, 220
Penna, Sarah, 128, 159, 220
Pentagon deal of Google, 341–42, 349, 355
people of color as YouTube creators, 40, 159, 339
Pepe (cartoon frog), 275
Peppa Pig videos, 308, 309, 320
Peretti, Jonah, 190
perks at YouTube offices, 148
Perry, Katy, 91
PETA, 38
Peter Bjorn and John, 57
Peterson, Jordan, 301
PewDiePie
- and ad-friendly mandate, 274
- and algorithms of YouTube, 275
- and alt-right, 277–78
- antisemitic content of, 277–78
- “Call of Duty: Black Ops: Wager Match: Gun Game,” 123
- celebrity of, 219
- and changes to algorithms, 161–62
- content shift of, 274–75
- and counter-speech, 217
- and “Death to all Jews” sign (Fiverr clip), 9, 277, 278, 279, 280
- “DELETING MY CHANNEL AT 50 MILLION,” 273–74
- and Disney, 219, 278
- fan base/subscribers of, 8, 9, 161, 162–63, 187, 218, 280, 352, 354
- “FUNNY GAMING MONTAGE!” 161
- gaming content created by, 123, 161–62, 219, 220, 274, 373
- and Machinima, 125, 162
- and Maker Studios, 162–63, 219, 274, 278
- and motivation of Kjellberg, 123
- “My Response.” (PewDiePie), 279–80
- and Nazi salute, 276
- and New Zealand terrorist attack (2019), 2, 10, 11, 357, 372
- recognizability of, 248
- and “Rewind 2018” video, 352, 354
- scandal of, 277–81
- Scare PewDiePie, 253, 254, 274, 279
- and subscriber glitches, 273–74, 275
- “Subscribe to PewDiePie!” rally, 353–54, 357, 360, 372
- successes of, 161–62, 186–87
- “THINGS YOU DIDN’T KNOW ABOUT ME,” 186–87
- threats to delete channel, 273–74
- and Trump, 9, 276
- Variety story on, 220
- vlogging of, 274–75
- “VLOG–Singapore–BROS ARE EVERYWHERE!” 218
- voice of, 276
- YouTube’s hands-off approach to, 280–81
- See also Kjellberg, Felix
Phan, Michelle, 78
PhoneDog.com, 78
Pichai, Sundar
- congressional testimony of, 345–47
- and criticisms of Wall Street Journal, 325
- and Damore memo, 301
- and engagement-based payments (Moneyball proposal), 338, 341
- and “next billion users,” 341, 342
- Page’s transfer of power to, 203, 230, 257
- at post-election staff meeting, 272
- on Rubin’s sexual misconduct, 348
- and shooting at San Bruno offices, 337
- on utility of Google, 401
- and walkout (2017), 350
Pichette, Patrick, 97
Pickett, Tom, 87–88
playground equipment at offices, 148
PocketWatch, 395
politics
- charges of political bias, 269, 273, 340, 342, 345, 367
- and congressional testimony of Pichai, 345–47
- fringe/dangerous political content, 270, 343
- Google/YouTube’s avoidance of, 63, 269, 340
- and government takedown requests, 399
- on home page of YouTube, 58
- and rise of the alt-right, 275
- and Trump’s bans, 397–98
pop-up ads, 68, 73
Porat, Ruth, 350
pornography, 32, 86, 168
Poulson, Jack, 234, 315
Power, DeStorm, 39–40, 95, 115, 159–60
power of YouTube, 391
Pozner, Leonard, 327
PragerU, 268–69
pranksters trend on YouTube, 307, 324
premium content, YouTube’s ambition to offer, 73–75, 126–27, 210, 391
presidential campaign/election of 2016
- and accusations of bias in search results, 269
- and algorithms of YouTube, 272, 326
- alt-right’s attacks on Clinton, 269–70
- and Cambridge Analytica scandal, 341
- common searches about candidates, 270
- and election night party, 271
- and Facebook’s “move fast and break things” motto, 309
- Hughes’s reaction to outcome, 294
- and postmortem at YouTube and Google, 272–73
- and recommendation engine of YouTube, 267
- and Russia’s election meddling, 340, 345
- and Trump fans on YouTube, 260, 264
- See also Trump, Donald
presidential campaign/election of 2020, 386–88
Pritchard, Marc, 283–84, 285, 287
problematic/troubling content
- advertising on, 285–87, 296
- bad actors behind, 308, 316, 329
- banning of harmful videos, 299–300
- and borderline footage, 32, 309, 310, 368, 398
- burying of, 296
- child exploitation, 311–16
- deletion of (Elsagate), 314
- echo chambers of, 299
- and intelligence desk, 356–57, 376
- labeling/tracking borderline clips, 180
- Paul’s video of suicide victim, 321–24
- penalty box for troublesome creators, 235, 292, 296, 327, 346
- proactive searches thwarted, 342
- public promises of YouTube on, 316
- removal of ads from, 324
- removal of inflammatory accounts, 379
- re-uploads of, 323, 360, 361
- targeted at kids, 305–11
- and user satisfaction ratings, 296
product placements, 67, 110–11
Project Beane, 258
Project MASA (Make Ads Safe Again), 296, 313, 381
purpose of YouTube, 22–23
Putin, Vladimir, 266

Q

QAnon, 346, 396
Qu, Hong, 95, 356
Quagliarello, Mia, 56, 57
quality of content, 175

R

radicalism, addressing, 235
Rajaraman, Shiva, 47–48, 51, 70
Ramaswamy, Sridhar, 199–200, 203, 313–14
Ranta, Phil, 306–7, 314
Raskin, Jamie, 346
rating system on YouTube, 95, 296, 369–70
Ratliff, Keith, 182
reality TV, 23–24
recommendation engine of YouTube
- algorithms behind, 100, 135
- and changes to algorithm, 156, 157
- and children, 236, 241
- and conspiracies/untruths, 325–29, 346
- and debatable content, 180
- echo chambers in, 265–66, 299
- and election misinformation of 2020, 388
- neural networks in, 233–35
- as new feature, 23
- Reinforce program behind, 298
- and right-wing content, 223, 224, 227
- and watch time, 154, 155
- See also algorithms of YouTube
re-creation aesthetic, 27
Reddit, 218, 270
Redstone, Sumner, 60, 62, 76, 253–54
refugees, 264
Reinforce program, 298
related videos sidebar, 23, 57, 100–101, 120, 156, 173, 239. See also recommendation engine of YouTube
relevancy enjoyed by YouTube, 6
“reply girls,” 150, 151, 159
repository of memories, YouTube as, 384, 385
Republicans, 325
responsibility mandate of YouTube, 328, 368, 369, 373, 401
Restricted Mode, 283, 290
Revelmode network of PewDiePie, 274
Revver, 21, 68
“Rewind 2018” (YouTube), 351–52, 354
Reyes, Ricardo, 59–60, 94, 136, 245–46
Rhapsody, 35–36
R. H. Donnelley, 51
rights to material, 133. See also copyright
right-wing creators and content, 224–27, 268–69
Robbins, Brian, 131–32, 134
“The Rocket Jump” (September 1, 2010), 116
Rogan, Joe, 295, 343, 390, 391
Rohe, Andre, 296
Ronaldinho (soccer star), 33
Roomba team, 370–71
Roose, Kevin, 222
Rose, Charlie, 230, 232–33
Rose, Jessica, 41
Rowling, J. K., 279
Rubin, Andy, 177, 348–49, 355
Russia, 326–27, 340, 341, 345, 397, 399
Russia Today (RT) television network, 190, 340–41
Ryan ToysReview, 237, 238, 306

S

safety measures added by YouTube, 366–67
sam bacile, 142
Samberg, Andy, 33–34
San Bruno offices of YouTube
- move to, 52, 53
- shooting at, 330–31, 336–37, 338
Sandberg, Sheryl, 195–96
Sandlin, Destin, 246
Sandy Hook school shooting (2012), 327
San Mateo offices of YouTube, 28, 30
Sanyo, 111
Sargon of Akkad (Benjamin), 223, 264, 294–95, 299, 378–79
Sarkeesian, Anita, 293
satisfaction ratings, 296–97
Saturday Night Live, 33–34
Saudi Arabia, 320
scandals, 50
scapegoating of social networks, 398–99
Scare PewDiePie, 253, 254, 274, 279
Schaffer, Micah
- “age-gating” policy of, 86
- background of, 37
- on conspiracy theories on YouTube, 366
- and culture of YouTube, 30
- defense of content, 87
- and Finland’s mass shooting, 64
- and Ghonim’s imprisonment, 142
- and Google’s acquisition of YouTube, 54, 55
- guidelines for content moderation, 31–32, 85–86
- and move to San Bruno offices, 52
- and Viacom lawsuit, 97, 98
- and Viacom negotiations, 60–61
- and Viacom’s content, 62
Schindler, Philipp, 286–87
Schmidt, Eric
- and advertisers’ boycott, 287
- expectations for profitability, 93, 96
- and Google’s acquisition of YouTube, 53
- and Google Video, 47
- on growth as priority of YouTube, 68
- and losses associated with YouTube, 97
- recruited to Google, 46
- romantic relationships of, 59
- transition from CEO to chairman, 146
schools, YouTube in, 170, 282–83
Schrock, Jasson, 58, 63
Scott, Kim, 198, 401
search system of YouTube, 5, 155, 360, 361
Section 230 of Communications Decency Act (1996), 35, 342
self-driving cars, 147
sell-through rate, 108, 109–10
Sequoia Capital, 29–30, 50, 390
server space required by YouTube, 25
Sesame Street, 167
sexism/sexual harassment, 224, 301–3, 348–50
sexual content, 86, 283, 306, 309
sharing videos, button for, 23
Sherratt, David, 221, 222, 223, 225, 264, 343
Shey, Tim, 211
shitposters, 275
Shkreli, Martin, 269–70
shock jocks, conservative, 224–25, 347
Shorts format, 393
Sierra Mist, 68
Sievers, David, 120–21, 162, 243, 252, 276, 307
Simpson, O. J., 61
Singh, Lilly, 276
Sjøberg, Jakob Høgh, 317–18, 320
skeptics, YouTube, 221–23, 226
skin-detection algorithms, 100
Slashdot, 29
Slate, 47
SmarterEveryDay, 246
Smith, Joseph “Big Joe,” 56
Smith, Shane, 132–33
Smith, Will, 351–52
Smoothie King, 67
Smosh, 67, 68–69, 73, 94, 110, 160, 248
Snapchat, 250, 256–57, 265, 390
Snoop Dogg, 162
Snowden, Edward, 215, 230
Social Blade, 352–53
social-justice-warriors rhetoric, 224–25
social networks/media
- business models of, 6
- creators’ posts to, 250–51
- explosive growth of, 138
- power of, 138–39
- and process of building platform, 179–80
- YouTube as, 345
- See also specific platforms, including Facebook
Soderberg-Rivkin, Daisy, 320
Some Good News (Krasinski), 377
Sony Pictures, 76
Soros, George, 264
Sorrell, Martin, 284, 285–86
sound synced to videos, 21
Southern, Lauren, 343–44
Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), 226, 261, 381
South Park (television show), 275
speech, gatekeeping/moderation of, 83–85
speed of videos loading, 151–52
Spencer, Richard, 299, 379
Spider-Man, people dressed as, 305–7, 309, 312
Spinosaurus Kin, 223. See also Sherratt, David
Spotify, 390, 391
“Spotlight” page of YouTube, 208, 261
SQUAD (Safety, Quality, and User Advocacy), 31–33, 52, 85–88, 319. See also content moderation
Stack, Andy, 119, 183, 255, 256, 393
staff meetings, Friday
- of Google, 81–82, 99, 146
- and move to San Bruno offices, 52–53
- and presidential election postmortem, 273
- and Viacom lawsuit, 99
- and Wojcicki, 244
standards
- on extreme violence, 291–93
- as moving target, 380
- and PewDiePie scandal, 279
- on white supremacists, 379–80
Stapleton, Claire
- background of, 80, 81
- and brand mission of YouTube, 5
- on coolhunter team, 207, 208
- and Damore memo, 303
- departure from YouTube, 374
- early days at Google, 80–81
- and Friday staff meetings, 82
- newsletters of, 209, 300, 301, 374, 400
- and Nightmare Fuel, 7
- and PewDiePie/Kjellberg, 373, 400
- on positive aspects of YouTube, 401
- and queer creators, 347
- recognized by Page, 147–48
- recruited to Google, 81
- and “restructuring” of role, 355–56
- and retreat at Indian Springs, 2–5, 10–11, 356
- and “Rewind 2018” reaction videos, 354
- and Rubin’s sexual misconduct, 348–49
- scriptwriting responsibilities of, 82–83
- and sexism at Google, 301
- and values of YouTube, 338–39
- walkout organized by, 2, 3, 348–50, 354–55, 373–74
- on Wojcicki, 261
Starbucks, 286
stars/celebrities of YouTube
- difficulty of work for, 254–55, 256–57
- disconnect between YouTube and, 252–53
- fans’ fervor for, 6, 248
- international reach of, 323–24
- and leadership at YouTube, 392
- leaving creator life, 257
- merchandise of, 324
- and Originals series of YouTube, 253–54, 261
- PewDiePie on number of, 352
- recruited by big media, 210
- trust in judgement of, 323–24
- and Wojcicki, 262
- and YouTube Creator Summit, 250–51, 253, 262
- See also PewDiePie
stars, ratings with, 95, 296, 369–70
stasis, leadership’s concerns about, 149
Stef. See Molyneux, Stefan
Stepleton, Luke, 124–25
Stewart, Jon, 24, 99
Stewart, Martha, 50
Steyer, Jim, 402
Stolboushkin, Alexei, 191, 192
Storyful, 139, 140, 141, 142, 144–45, 190, 399
Stream (off-site meeting), 291
Strompolos, George
- and commercial concepts for content producers, 69
- and Fullscreen, 180–81, 182, 184
- and Google’s acquisition of YouTube, 54
- and Google Video, 43, 44
- and product placements, 110–11
- and Wong’s YouTube road trip, 116
Studio71, 128, 306, 322
stupidvideos.com, 16
Styxhexenhammer666, 325, 326
subscribers, cleanup of dormant/fake accounts, 275
subscriptions model, 50, 393
suicide victim, Paul’s video of, 321–24, 352
Sun Valley summit, 48–50
Supan, Julie, 49
superheroes content, 305–6, 314
Suster, Mark, 185, 186
Swoozie (Adande Thorne), 262
sxephil, 69, 112
Syria, 140, 145
Syrian refugees, 264

T

Take180 web studio, 107
takedown requests, 399
takeovers, 58
talk radio, 224, 226
talk shows, daily, 160
teen mom vlogging, 301
television
- ad rates on, 72–73
- cable vs. broadcast networks, 23
- competing services of networks, 75–77
- declines in viewership, 5, 73, 121
- and financial model, 74–75
- influx of networks on YouTube, 275
- and linking to videos outside of YouTube, 108–9
- point of maturity (1951), 136
- and searchable TV database project, 96–97
- YouTube’s growth on, 393–94
terrorism
- and advertising on YouTube, 285, 286, 287
- and Arab Spring, 142–43, 144
- and counter-speech, 216, 217
- difficulty of screening for, 215–16
- London Bridge (2017), 292, 296
- New Zealand (2019), 357–61
- and users on official watch lists, 214
- See also ISIS
Thailand, 83, 85
Thicke, Robin, 143–44
“thinspiration”/ “thinspo,” 86
Thompson, Nick, 327–28
Thorne, Adande (Swoozie), 262
thumbs up/down indicators (likes), 95, 158, 276, 296, 337, 389
Thunderf00t, 222, 223
TikTok, 6, 369, 390, 391, 393, 394
Time, 244
The Times of London, 285, 287, 313
titles of content, 172
Toy Freaks channel, 304, 307, 308, 310, 312, 313, 314–15
Toyota, 75, 285
toys, content featuring, 237–38, 240–41, 242
transgender creators, 382–83
“trashy video classifier,” 298
Trending tab on home page, 299, 321, 323, 326, 329
trends on YouTube, tracking, 170–71
troll attacks, 86
Troper, Dennis, 197
Trump, Donald
- and The Apprentice, 23–24
- banned from platforms, 397–98
- and birtherism, 326
- channels uncritically promoting, 273
- elected president, 272
- and Facebook, 370
- and Holocaust Remembrance Day, 277
- and PewDiePie, 9, 276
- popular Google search on, 270
- presidential election of 2016, 260, 264
- presidential election of 2020, 387
- and Russian-ties investigation, 325
- and Southern Poverty Law Center, 381
- South Park’s ribbing of, 275
- supporters on YouTube, 260–61
- and Twitter, 270, 397
- videos pulled by YouTube, 371, 397
- on WWE, 77
- YouTube content/discussions on, 264
Trump, Donald, Jr., 367
Trust and Safety team at YouTube, 291–92, 321, 378, 386. See also content moderation
truth of content, assessing, 327–28
T-Series, 353, 372
Tubefilter, 239
Tufekci, Zeynep, 338
Tur, Zoey, 61
Turkey, 84–85
Turner Broadcasting System, 26
TVCs (“temporary, vendor, and contract” employees), 317–20
Twitch, 78, 210
Twitter
- early days of, 6
- growth of, 138
- and ISIS uploads, 215
- payment of creators, 390
- and Russian agents, 326–27
- and Trump, 270, 397
- and Vine, 321
TXCANY, 98
Tyson (skateboarding bulldog), 77

U

U.K. Cabinet, 285
unboxing videos, 78–79, 171, 239, 240, 242, 304
Uptime, 368
U.S. Department of Justice, 365, 401
Uygur, Cenk, 224

V

Vaco, 319
values of YouTube, 338–39
Varela, Francisco, 176
Variety, 220, 248
VE (violent extremism) team at YouTube, 291–93, 380
venture capital investments, 29–30
The Verge, 298, 319
Verizon Wireless, 56
Vessel, 251
Viacom
- and Krasinski’s Some Good News, 377
- lawsuit against YouTube, 62–63, 97–99, 108
- negotiations with Google, 60–62
- and Nickelodeon, 169
- pending deal with, 47
- VidCon purchased by, 293
- and YouTube’s interest in CBS, 76
Vice, 132–33, 252–53
VidCon
- beginnings of, 117–19
- changes to culture of, 160
- and decompression at Alchemy House, 256
- and Harry Jho, 173
- Kamangar’s speech at, 139–40
- and Penna at Cosmic Panda unveiling, 158
- Sesame Street clip played at, 169
- Viacom’s purchase of, 293
video games
- and Gamergate, 225
- growth of genre, 218
- and Machinima, 124–25
- PewDiePie’s content, 123, 161–62, 219, 220, 274, 373
- Sarkeesian on sexist tropes in, 293–94
video responses, button for, 39
views of content
- as bad metric, 150
- and changes to reward system, 155, 157
- and clickbait, 149, 150
- and COVID-19 pandemic, 376, 377–78
- on home page, 298–99
- and length of viewing sessions, 252
- and recommendation system, 135
Vine, 250–51, 321
violence, extreme, 291–93, 317–18, 357–61, 366
viral videos, 157
vlogbrothers, 118, 289. See also Green, Hank; Green, John
vlogging, 247–48, 249–50, 274–75, 301
Vlogmas, 247–48, 386
Volpi, Mike, 50
von Lohmann, Fred, 36–38

W

Walk, Hunter, 95–96, 169–70, 175, 179
Walker, Patrick, 76, 109, 368
walkout at Google (2017), 2, 3–4, 348–50, 351, 373–74
The Wall Street Journal
- on ads paired with vile content, 286, 287
- criticisms of YouTube, 264
- on PewDiePie, 9, 220, 277, 278, 279–80
- on untruths elevated by YouTube, 325
- and word of funded channels, 133
Walmart, 286
war crimes, archives of, 296
Warner, Mark, 341
Warren, Elizabeth, 365
watch time of audience
- and billion-hours goal of YouTube, 228, 270
- and COVID-19, 376
- and “Delicious”/ “Nutritious” content, 174
- and engagement-based payments, 337
- and machine learning, 191–92, 233
- of pro-Trump content, 273
- shift to, as primary metric, 153–55, 156–60
- and Shorts format, 393
- and strain on company servers, 203
- “valued watch time,” 370
Watson, Paul Joseph, 269–70
Wayans, Damon, 75
WayoutTV, 75
Webs & Tiaras channel, 305–7, 314
Weed, Barbara, 194
Weiner, Anthony, 214
Weinstein, Dan, 114, 120, 128, 160, 183, 184–85, 322
Weinstein, Harvey, 339
Weiss, Evan, 65–66, 77–78
Werevertumorro (vlogging channel), 135
What the Buck? 69
Whetstone, Rachel, 87
White House YouTube channel, 259
white nationalism, 261, 343, 381
white supremacists, 379–81
Whittaker, Meredith, 355, 374
WIGS web series, 135
Wikipedia, 328
Wild Wild Country (television show), 320
Williams, Chris, 107, 242, 395
Williams, Robin, 43
“Will It Blend?” account, 94
Wilms, Kurt, 330–31, 334, 336
Winfrey, Oprah, 77
Wired, 302, 327
Wojcicki, Anne, 197, 199, 200–201, 203
Wojcicki, Esther, 196, 197
Wojcicki, Susan
- and ad operations of MCNs, 251
- and ads business of Google, 195, 196, 197–98, 200, 213
- and advertiser-friendly content, 267
- and Alphabet, 257
- background of, 196–97
- and billion-hours-of-viewing goal, 228
- and Black creators, 261–62, 293
- and boycott by advertisers, 287, 289, 295, 300, 329
- as CEO of YouTube, 202–4, 210–11
- and child-exploitation allegations, 313–14
- and conspiracies/untruths, 327–29
- and content moderation, 216, 399
- and COVID-19, 375
- on creators’ importance, 392
- at Creator Summit, 289
- and Damore memo, 302–3
- decisiveness of, 371
- and DoubleClick acquisition, 71, 197, 198
- and EduTubers, 246
- and Facebook, 251, 264–65
- on financial support for creators, 403
- founders’ trust in, 198, 199
- Google’s origins in garage of, 45, 199
- and Google Video, 46–47, 51
- Green’s interview with, 375–76, 402–3
- and identification of offensive content, 255
- and Indian market, 369
- and influencer advertising campaign, 248
- and Islamic extremists, 291
- leadership at YouTube, 402
- library analogy of, 328
- and Mohan, 258
- and motherhood, 198, 244
- and music app, 241
- on news-related content, 343
- and Paul’s video of suicide victim, 324
- personality of, 261, 401, 402
- and PewDiePie/Kjellberg, 8, 372–73
- and problematic content, 310, 316
- public image/life of, 198, 211, 401
- Ramaswamy’s dispute with, 199–200, 203
- reception within YouTube, 211–13
- on regulation, 366, 373
- on responsibility mandate, 368, 369, 373, 401
- revenue goals of, 252, 382
- and “Rewind 2018” video, 354
- and Roomba team, 370–71
- and Rubin’s exit package, 355
- and security, 336
- and shooting at San Bruno offices, 334, 336
- on TikTok, 393
- and values of YouTube, 339
- and Washington powerbrokers, 346
women
- and Damore memo, 301–3
- initiative to recruit female viewers, 369
- in leadership in Silicon Valley, 195–96
- and misogyny, 223
- and walkout at Google (2017), 2, 3–4, 348–50, 351, 373–74
Wong, Freddie (freddiew)
- advance received by, 116–17
- and changes to algorithm, 160
- and culture of YouTube, 38–39
- departure from YouTube, 385
- and free-speech decisions, 143
- Guitar Hero clip of, 40
- and partner program, 115
- and sense of community, 122
- trust deficit of creators, 160
- at “YouTube Live” event, 94
- and “YouTube road trip,” 116–17
Wong, Nicole “the Decider,” 83, 84, 85
WPP (ad agency), 284, 286
Wright, Johanna, 326
Wu, Tim, 85
WWE (faux-pro-wrestling channel), 77
Wynn, Natalie, 221–22, 226, 382, 385, 392

Y

Yahoo, 17, 37, 51, 52, 169
Yiannopoulos, Milo, 263, 264
Yoga with Adriene, 5
York, Jillian, 215
The Young Turks (talk show), 224
youth, YouTube’s attraction to, 6
#YouTubeBlack, 261, 262, 293
“YouTube for Good” initiative, 169–70, 175
YouTube Kids app, 238–39, 243–45, 308, 311–12, 394–95
“YouTube Live,” 91, 94
YouTube Music Key, 241–42
YouTube Red (later Premium), 242
“YouTube Rewind 2018” (YouTube), 351–52
“YouTube road trip,” 116–17
YouTubers. See audience of YouTube; creators
YouTube Space, 254
YouTube Trends, 170
YouTube TV, 382

Z

Zacharias, Chris, 96, 149
Zappin, Danny
- ambition of, 107, 112, 186
- background of, 105–6
- credit card debt of, 112
- Danny Diamond persona, 106–7, 149
- and Diamond Factory, 107, 111, 149
- and Disney’s acquisition of Maker Studios, 219
- and Donovan, 186
- and grant from YouTube, 112
- Johnson’s spat with, 185
- and leadership of Maker Studios, 185, 186
- and LisaNova account, 106–7
- and Maker Studios, 112–13
- and multichannel network model, 127–28
- personality of, 113–14
- and PewDiePie, 162
- and Sanyo commercial, 111
- and Sievers, 121
- successes of, 114
- venture capital raised by, 162
- See also Maker Studios
Zika virus in Brazil, 366
Zimmerman, George, 226
Zombie, Rob, 101
Zonday, Tay, 58, 94
Zucker, Jeff, 73
Zuckerberg, Mark, 233, 342, 397
Zunger, Yonatan, 180