Fury as footage of youngster being burnt returns to YouTube

YOUNGSTERS who set fire to one of their friends and put the footage on YouTube have posted the clip again after it had been removed by the video-sharing website.

I honestly do not understand how such a video can be posted on YouTube.

A fire spokesman wrote to YouTube requesting the video be removed yet it doesn’t look like his letter is going to make any difference.

I wouldn’t say YouTube is advocating setting people on fire however, by allowing this video to be posted on the website they are not saying its wrong.

I can’t seem to find one reason why this video should be posted on YouTube.

What do you think? All comments welcome…

Cancer story gets national attention

A video of Jack Hoeger, an 8-year-old rural Cedar Rapids boy, was posted Thursday in a blog on the Lance Armstrong Foundation’s Livestrong Web site, www.livestrong.org

The video of Jack’s cancer survival story, “Get to Know Jack,” was made Saturday by a family friend who operates a Dubuque Web site company and was posted on YouTube, said Jack’s father, Marty Hoeger, 35.

I think that this video is fantastic. I found it really moving. It’s really sad that an 8 year old boy had to go through such a horrible experience yet he survived and is able to speak about what he went through. It’s really inspiring.

This video has been watched more than 12,000 times and had 80 comments. This is a great video and I’m really happy that it has been posted on YouTube.

What do you think? All comments welcome…

Suspected vandals caught after posting YouTube video

Four Scottsdale youths posted a video “of us breaking stuff” by smashing skateboards into vending machines and cars on YouTube, gathering over 1,300 hits.

Police identified them on the video and the youths face charges in Maricopa County Juvenile Court.

Throughout this whole blog I’ve argued that YouTube shouldn’t allow these videos to be posted online. Many have disagreed with me…but look where it got these teenagers. Obviously I don’t know for sure, but YouTube must have been some sort of incentive for these teenagers to “break stuff”. It’s a way of them getting recognition. If YouTube didn’t allow such footage to be posted online than one could hypothetically say that they never would have committed such a crime…

On the other hand…YouTube is a sharing website and people should be allowed to upload whatever they want, and if teenagers want to upload videos of themselves ruining people’s property than they should be able to…at the risk of being found by the police that is!

What do you think? Do you agree that the video should never have been allowed to be posted online? Or do you believe that YouTube are just in allowing this video to be published?

All comments welcome…

Gang fight in Gwinnett school captured on YouTube

Yet another school fight was posted on YouTube. This time the fight took place at Mill Creek High where six students were suspended for beating up a fellow class mate.

YouTube NEED to censor these videos, however, it’s true that this would be a long and difficult process. There must be another way in which they can deal with inappropriate videos. A solution occurred to me…When school fights are posted online, instead of removing them, another video should be posted illustrating how the people involved were punished. That way, others become more aware of the consequences of such bullying and violence… This is just an idea…and it may not necessarily work as the people involved may object to such a video being posted online…But hey YouTube is a sharing website and anything can be posted right?

What do you think? All comments welcome…

YouTube clip ‘incited suicide’

´How To´ suicide videos are on the rise on YouTube.

The telegraph told us on March 22nd that tougher regulation of the internet is needed to stop websites giving detailed instructions on how to commit suicide.

In one YouTube clip, viewed by the Bridgend coroner, an American man explains how to tie a hangman’s noose and mentions his growing fan base in the UK.

Mr Walters, the Bridgend coroner, said the man’s diary was very disturbing and that there was no doubt it was encouraging people to take their own lives.

This finding is extremely disturbing. It´s sad to think that so many people watched and copied this hideous footage. Like Mr Walters said, this kind of footage promotes, and can encourage others to commit suicide. I really think that YouTube shouldn’t publish videos giving instructions on how to commit suicide. YouTube don’t realise the extent to which such footage can influence people’s behaviour.

What do you think? All comments welcome…

Bristol Tennessee Cops Get First Hit On YouTube Video

The Bristol Tennessee Police Department posted a video showing some of their most-wanted suspects with the video-sharing Web site YouTube on Wednesday.

I think that this is a great way to help police find criminals.

On Friday, police officers were able to apprehend Noah Jay Carrier, 25, after receiving several anonymous tips on his whereabouts from people who saw the video.

According to reports, YouTube accounted for one-third of the 9.8 billion videos viewed online in the U.S. during January meaning that the police can gain such large coverage within the U.S via YouTube.

Do you agree that this method of finding criminals is constructive?

All comments welcome…

Morality Down the Tube

After reading a comment by Jack on my post ‘Responsibilities down the Tube’ I realised that a lot of the points he was making were very true.

He said: “A more worrying trend is that YouTube gives people ‘what they want’. Unfortunately, it seems that the world we inhabit ‘want’ rape, bullying, death, pornography, racism, gun glorification, propaganda, conspiracy theories, Jackass re-enactments etc. etc.”

When asked “How often have you viewed sexual images in the past month?” on an online survey, only 3% answered “Not once, and I have never before” whereas 27% answered “A few times a week” and 10% answered “Several times a day.” This illustrates the ‘need’ for porn.

YouTube’s statistics show that 6% of the 100 most watched videos on YouTube are porn related. These videos have 15 – 39 million hits each.

However, it’s possible to say that everyone is entitled to watch whatever they want and so if they want to watch porn why should they be prosecuted for doing so? Nevertheless can this be classified as morally wrong?

One could say that none of this is YouTube’s fault – it merely allows people to upload whatever content they wish and therefore highlights a global decline in morality.

Additionally, countless videos uploaded onto YouTube contain racist slander. It’s true to say that everyone has the right to voice their opinion however some of the comments are really out of line and should be removed from the site.

Is morality declining? Is YouTube not to blame, but the sheer moral downfall in society?

If so, we have to proactively tackle the problems in society that are leading to people uploading filth on to YouTube and uncover the root causes.

What do you think? All comments welcome…

China Blocks YouTube Over Tibet Videos

China blocked access to YouTube.com on Sunday after dozens of videos of recent protests in Tibet appeared on the popular U.S. video Web site.

The blocking added to the communist government’s efforts to control what the public saw and heard about protests that erupted Friday in the Tibetan capital, Lhasa, against Chinese rule.

It seems that China believe that the only way in which Chinese people gain information is via YouTube. However, this is not true as they are able to watch the news on TV and read about it in newspapers and magazines. One could say that it’s unfair that YouTube has been blocked because in a way they’ve done nothing wrong.

What do you think? All comments welcome…

Turkey blocks YouTube access

Turkey blocked access to the popular video-sharing Web site YouTube on Thursday in response to a video clip deemed insulting to the country’s revered founding father, state-run media said.

This is not the first time YouTube has been blocked in a country due to insulting videos.

The YouTube bans in Turkey have highlighted the country’s troubled record on free expression which Turkey wants to improve as part of its bid to join the European Union.

The questions which need to be asked here is Turkey correct? Is YouTube wrong for allowing such videos to be posted on their website OR is it fair?

It’s difficult to answer such questions because we are not in the Turks position. Had someone posted a video insulting Tony Blair or Margaret Thatcher would Britain react in the same way?

What do you think? All comments welcome…

Teens get a taste of Hollywood at Putnam’s YouTube premiere

Area teens strolled the red carpet Thursday for a premiere and awards ceremony of YouTube videos they produced for a library contest.

The teens wrote scripts, shot video and edited three to five minute movies last month during Teen Tech Week, an annual event sponsored by area libraries. The videos could be an alternate ending to a book or portray why the teens loved their library. The finished YouTube videos were debuted on the IMAX screen at the Putnam Museum Thursday.

Again here is a productive way in which YouTube can be used. Teenagers were given the opportunity to tap into their inner director skills and produce videos which interested them without any crude and inappropriate aspects to it.

What do you think? All comments welcome