This morning, I saw a short video from the Youtube channel Alternate History Hub, which tries to guess what would occur if specific historical events happened differently or never happened at all. In it, he explains that Youtube has chosen to demonetize a wide range of history-focused channels:
As he stated in the video, these channels are not producing politically extreme content, merely retelling historical facts. Indeed, these channels often make some accommodations to avoid demonetization; one of the most common is replacing the Nazi swastika with an Iron Cross in discussions of WWII-era Germany, even though these channels do not promote Nazi ideology at all.
But what does this have to do with products? Everything.
When Youtube determines that a video isn’t suitable for all advertisers, Youtube demonetizes that video. Its monetization policy is quite explicit about this fact, too. Quoted from Google (emphasis mine):
Controversial issues and sensitive events
Content that features or focuses on sensitive topics or events is generally not suitable for ads. This policy applies even if the content is purely commentary or contains no graphic imagery.
At first, you would wonder why they’d do that, but think about it. History — real, honest history — is not clean and pretty. It is not nice and focus-grouped to avoid the smallest possibility of offense. It is not a theme park or a big-budget franchise.
Some would argue that historical events are presented a certain way to fulfill certain political goals, but the most fascinating stories go beyond such simpleminded propaganda. History done right shows humanity at its best and at its worst, at its most heroic and at its most base, in its greatest triumphs and in its lowest troughs. It shows the folly of searching for utopia and the hubris of empire.
And most importantly, it explains why our world is the way it is today.
Advertisers have to sell globally, and selling globally means no potential customer can be offended. Everything has to be leveled out to the lowest common denominator, so all you are allowed to do is consume product and get others excited for next products. The messy details of history get in the way of that.
This isn’t a plea to remonetize the channels (though that would be nice), but to understand just how important history truly is.
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My novel, Shining Tomorrow Volume 1: Shadow Heart, tells of an alternate history where Germany wins World War I and the Empire of Japan takes over the United States, now called the North American Federation. Grab a copy today!
