YouTube has launched a larger set of tools so that parents can monitor and better control their children’s online activities, including subscriptions, video uploads, comments, and more. The worldwide popular platform will now enable concerned parents to connect their accounts with their children’s accounts.
YouTube has also decided to restrict particular fitness and health video recommendations to teenagers. This includes videos which glorify specific body types. The platform has revealed that it is taking such steps due to concerns that exposure to such content repeatedly can lead to the growth of “negative beliefs” within younger individuals, per BBC.
YouTube introduces new tools to increase child online safety
As mentioned above, YouTube has initiated brand-new expanded tools to increase children’s online safety. It has declared that users between the age group of 13 and 17 will be able to search and watch content related to fitness. However, the platform will not encourage the repeated viewing of such videos.
The algorithm system of YouTube usually recommends similar materials for its viewers to consume once they are done watching certain kinds of videos. The platform also displays related content on a sidebar.
However, the platform will no longer offer teens those facilities when they watch particular kinds of content. This includes videos idealizing certain physical types rather than others, comparing physical features, glorifying specific body weights and fitness levels. It further includes content that displays social aggression through intimidation and non-contact fights.
YouTube has also increased parental control over their kids’ activities on the platform. As reported by the New York Post, the platform’s new guidance states, “As your pre-teens grow, their interests can too.” It continues, “YouTube’s new supervision option helps you have open conversations with your teens as they begin to create and share on YouTube for the first time.”
For children in early adolescence, parents can set filters to limit their children’s viewing of age-appropriate content. Parents will also have access to an autoplay kill switch. This will prevent children from getting stuck in an endless loop of certain types of content.
