Youtube

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  • Number 18Number 18 Posts: 132
    I just hate YouTube because they block it on my work's network. :( ;)

    I think all sources, whether they be mainstream media, YouTube, or some random "independent" site, should be scrutinized for accuracy and credibility. To assume a site has MORE credibility because it is not part of the mainstream media is just as absurd as to assume the mainstream media has credibility.
  • decides2dreamdecides2dream Posts: 14,977
    Most youtube clips have about 1 second of substance for every minute of actual content. So please understand that when you post a 20 minute youtube clip, a lot of us aren't actually going to sit there and watch it, whereas if you post a link to written content it's much more likely that your audience will read and explore the information.



    EXACTLY.

    that is probably my main beef with youtube links. also, i don't click links at work. period. so then i miss the content of the discussion.


    i FAR prefer reading here. i can read at my own pace, not the pace predetermined by some video clip. also easier to refer back to instead of having to rewatch thru, trying to find the exact spot where something of significance is said.


    youtube obviously has a purpose, and a good function for many things.....but as a preference for real information, give me the written word.
    Stay with me...
    Let's just breathe...


    I am myself like you somehow


  • Blanket crticisms of youtube are unfair, but treating youtube as a primary or unbiased source is foolish. Much of the content on youtube is exceptionally biased, shallow, and often times inaccurate or misleading. In the political arena, youtube's primary function is as a propaganda platform, not an information source. That said, there is certainly good content on youtube and it is a very powerful platform for sharing information.

    It really comes down to what you use it for. If you post a clip from youtube that was obviously produced by someone with an agenda, don't be surprised if you get backlash.

    Do people actually use youtube as a source of info like that?

    I mean I don't get it, don't they train you in like 2nd grade to know the primary source and its credibility when you gather information?
  • Do people actually use youtube as a source of info like that?

    Absolutely. People use all kinds of sources like that, be them youtube, foxnews.com, lewrockwell.com, commondreams.org, the nightly news, dailykos.com, the list goes on and on. I'm sure I've been guilty of this too, in the interest of full disclosure.

    I'd guess that 95% of the debates here that involve sources probably utilize highly laughable sources for the bulk of their evidence while treating them as primary sources. One poster will put something up from some blatantly liberal website, another will put something up from some blatantly conservative website, and then both will piss at each other back and forth about whose source is "objective" when neither is.
    I mean I don't get it, don't they train you in like 2nd grade to know the primary source and its credibility when you gather information?

    Hehe...probably not 2nd grade. Regardless, I think we all forget those lessons sometimes.

    There's really nothing inherently wrong with using youtube or any other website as a source of some kind. The problem comes from people treating these sources as something different than what they are. A youtube video of Ralph Nader or Ron Paul or someone else giving a speech can be treated as a primary source in a discussion about facts regarding those men and their positions. A youtube video featuring snippets from those people sandwiched in between a bunch of silly conclusions utilizing piecemeal evidence, however, should never be treated as a source of anything except for the original poster's or original creator's opinions. In far too many instances here, we attempt to pass off blatantly agenda-driven content as fact or, even worse, assume the facts within blatantly agenda-driven content represent a basis from which conclusions can be drawn.
  • LikeAnOceanLikeAnOcean Posts: 7,718
    lazymoon13 wrote:
    you tube is more for entertainment purposes then fact gathering.
    As in all forms of communication.. There's a lot of educational stuff on there as well.
  • rebornFixerrebornFixer Posts: 4,901
    Its the way people use youtube on here ... One can no more bash youtube as a concept than you can bash verbal debate, or TV, or any other communication medium.

    What irks me is when people make illogical or otherwise unsupported arguments, and then attempt to back them up with propagandist video bytes from youtube, as if somehow that makes the argument hold up better. Using youtube in this way is no better than using soundbytes or jingoistic language to artificially bolster one's credibility. Sorry, but some youtube clip that says Israelis drink the blood of Palestinian babies, made by ALLAHIZGR8@KILLTHEJEWZ.ORG/UN, is not going to help your case ... Its just going to make people think that youtube is full of garbage.
  • Its the way people use youtube on here ... One can no more bash youtube as a concept than you can bash verbal debate, or TV, or any other communication medium.

    What irks me is when people make illogical or otherwise unsupported arguments, and then attempt to back them up with propagandist video bytes from youtube, as if somehow that makes the argument hold up better. Using youtube in this way is no better than using soundbytes or jingoistic language to artificially bolster one's credibility. Sorry, but some youtube clip that says Israelis drink the blood of Palestinian babies, made by ALLAHIZGR8@KILLTHEJEWZ.ORG/UN, is not going to help your case ... Its just going to make people think that youtube is full of garbage.


    Of course, there's crap on youtube....and in books, articles, the nightly news and newpapers...you name it.

    The point was how silly it is to bash one form of media over others, when they all can have information that isn't very objective.
    If you want to tell people the truth, make them laugh, otherwise they'll kill you.

    Man is least himself when he talks in his own person. Give him a mask, and he will tell you the truth.
    -Oscar Wilde
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