Coffee Break
3 HN recommenders · recommended in 3 months, 2019–2020
13:50 · 1.6M views · May 21, 2019
Coffee Break analyzes about 40,000 videos from seven months of YouTube's trending tab. It examines whether trending is biased toward mainstream media and late-night shows.
Cited in threads on YouTube algorithms and creator complaints as a data-driven look at the trending tab.
5 comments from Hacker News
Here's an excellent video breaking down with extremely compelling data how the "trending" tab is very heavily manipulated in favor of mainstream media sources: this video What's interesting is that extreme bias in the US is not seen in Canada. Though I'm not sure it's stated in the video, I think that Youtube has been propping up MSM sources so that they can make themselves seem more relevant in the eyes of the MSM. They're doing this so that they can partner with the MSM and expand their YoutubeTV service. They desperately want some sort of service model to make money, and they're willing to destroy the goodwill of the community to achieve it.
Another excellent analysis of what Trends on YouTube [0] "Is the trending tab rigged against creators? Is late night dominating the charts? Why does it feel your favorite controversial creator never trends. All of that and more, in the first ever data-driven look at the trending tab." What 40,000 Videos Tell Us About The Trending Tab: [0] this video
This is a video I recall watching recently that backs up your point. Not sure if anyone has refuted this person's points but they are pretty alarming no matter what side of isle you sit. this video (What 40,000 Videos Tell Us About The Trending Tab)
It's obvious youtube is for mainstream media now, with content creators being a leftover wart, minuscule on youtube's radar. Content creators deal with an opaque algorithm that demonetizes videos based on how the wind is blowing, or it would appear. Weeks or months of work can be wiped out by an arbitrary demonetization preventing content creators from getting paid for their video's views. JonTron discusses this [1]. It's very easy to violate the "advertiser-friendly" guidelines. They're vague: "violence", "harmful content", "controversial or sensitive issues". Under profanity: "strong profanity used in video even if bleeped for comedy, documentary, news, or educational purposes ". ??! It has been obvious for a long time that daily content uploads are better for the algorithm than longer, quality videos uploaded less frequently. If you look at the LinusTechTips network of channels, they produce at least 5-7 videos per week. [0]: An analysis of 7 months worth of trending tab videos, or roughly ~40k videos that reached the trending tab. this video [1]: [LINK]
Not only is it manipulated, it's flagrantly obvious. PewDiePie for example trends in many countries except the US [e.g. 45 times in Canada, 42 times in Germany vs 1 time in the US], and it's not just him either but many "controversial" channels. Source: an analysis of 40,000 trending videos [7 months of trending tab videos]: this video