Ask Pandora
Today's question for 3.21.22:
Why are content creators so sloppy with facts and pronunciation?
Have you noticed how many of the presenters on YouTube mispronounce names, misread copy to the point that it changes the meaning of the original text, and dumb themselves down to the point that you may want to click off and unsubscribe? Here are some examples I've found that made me stop the video and unsubscribe:
What is going on with that? We consulted with someone who has been creating content on YouTube for nearly a decade. This person has asked to remain anonymous because they were going to spill some tea. We'll share everything except the identities of the guilty party. Recognize yourself here? Take the hint and do better. Your viewers will thank you.
Our informant wanted us to know that, "people are often unaware of how much it costs to be a content creator at the level where it is their full-time job. The better-known creators have teams who write, research, and edit those vlog posts. In some cases, they have stylists, agents, and publicists who keep their clients looking their best and being seen in an increasingly crowded field. All of that costs money. In order to keep going, they have4 to monetize their feeds. A lucky few might be pulling in the big bucks, but most are making a decent living and putting a fairly high percentage of what they make back into production.
"Some of the metrics a creator has to meet are fairly obvious. Subscription, views, clicks on ads, all of these help creators prove their worth to social media platforms. Beyond that, there are the rules about what content can and can't be monetized, sustained plays where someone watches the entire video, and engagement."
He paused for a moment, and then continued. "I think the need to meet a minimum level of engagement with viewers is the cause of a lot of the silliness you see.
"At one point, it was all about likes versus dislikes. I imagine YouTube figured out that hatewatching was still watching, so they decided to push for something more, and that was the comment section. They may be happy as long as a good portion of the viewers post, 'Yass Kween!' or 'That cat or baby is so cute!' It could be that YouTube wants more substantial responses. So creators may ask their viewers for emojis or to name their favorite clip or something. I don't know. It has been addrfessed but I honestly don't pay much attention to it or the comments. By the time most of my viewers watch one of videos, I am already busy making my next one. That's the reality of the business."
Our interviewee watched some examples of the kind of behavior we were talking about.
"They're probably bored with asking for comments. I get tired of it and forget to ask sometimes. What they are hoping for is someone calling them out. It accomplishes two things. They get to play the victim because some meanie picked on them for not doing their due diligence. It will bring defenders who love a good argument out from under the rocks. At the very least, they'll have posts offering corrections to their misspellings and factual errors. I would hate to admit to being that ignorant, especially when I am claiming a degree of expertise in an area or supposedly digging for facts.
"I don't regularly watch any of these, but I felt secondhand cringe hearing them mangle what are pretty common words as well as the names of people and places. It would be fair to say they know what they're doing. It's sad they have to do this in order to meet a requirement to keep being recommended. Dance, monkey, dance applies here. Maybe one day there will be better ways to assess the worth of a streaming channel. It makes me feel stupid lucky that I was picked up by the internet arm of a cable channel. I got to miss this aspect of the business of being a content creator."
Indeed, it would be nice to have all the good stuff with none of the cringe that is demanded of these people. The next time someone says there's no such place as Chattanooga, if I'm feeling nice, I might let them know Chattanooga is real.
Until next time, my little novelty tea strainers!
X! X!
Pandora
- An art Youtuber claimed to not know what kneadable art gum was. She has a BFA in studio art from a state university.
- An otherwise respectable information-centered YouTuber claimed to not know if Chattanooga, Tennessee was a real place.
- Another online parajournalist continually mispronounces name and terms that are central to their story.
What is going on with that? We consulted with someone who has been creating content on YouTube for nearly a decade. This person has asked to remain anonymous because they were going to spill some tea. We'll share everything except the identities of the guilty party. Recognize yourself here? Take the hint and do better. Your viewers will thank you.
Our informant wanted us to know that, "people are often unaware of how much it costs to be a content creator at the level where it is their full-time job. The better-known creators have teams who write, research, and edit those vlog posts. In some cases, they have stylists, agents, and publicists who keep their clients looking their best and being seen in an increasingly crowded field. All of that costs money. In order to keep going, they have4 to monetize their feeds. A lucky few might be pulling in the big bucks, but most are making a decent living and putting a fairly high percentage of what they make back into production.
"Some of the metrics a creator has to meet are fairly obvious. Subscription, views, clicks on ads, all of these help creators prove their worth to social media platforms. Beyond that, there are the rules about what content can and can't be monetized, sustained plays where someone watches the entire video, and engagement."
He paused for a moment, and then continued. "I think the need to meet a minimum level of engagement with viewers is the cause of a lot of the silliness you see.
"At one point, it was all about likes versus dislikes. I imagine YouTube figured out that hatewatching was still watching, so they decided to push for something more, and that was the comment section. They may be happy as long as a good portion of the viewers post, 'Yass Kween!' or 'That cat or baby is so cute!' It could be that YouTube wants more substantial responses. So creators may ask their viewers for emojis or to name their favorite clip or something. I don't know. It has been addrfessed but I honestly don't pay much attention to it or the comments. By the time most of my viewers watch one of videos, I am already busy making my next one. That's the reality of the business."
Our interviewee watched some examples of the kind of behavior we were talking about.
"They're probably bored with asking for comments. I get tired of it and forget to ask sometimes. What they are hoping for is someone calling them out. It accomplishes two things. They get to play the victim because some meanie picked on them for not doing their due diligence. It will bring defenders who love a good argument out from under the rocks. At the very least, they'll have posts offering corrections to their misspellings and factual errors. I would hate to admit to being that ignorant, especially when I am claiming a degree of expertise in an area or supposedly digging for facts.
"I don't regularly watch any of these, but I felt secondhand cringe hearing them mangle what are pretty common words as well as the names of people and places. It would be fair to say they know what they're doing. It's sad they have to do this in order to meet a requirement to keep being recommended. Dance, monkey, dance applies here. Maybe one day there will be better ways to assess the worth of a streaming channel. It makes me feel stupid lucky that I was picked up by the internet arm of a cable channel. I got to miss this aspect of the business of being a content creator."
Indeed, it would be nice to have all the good stuff with none of the cringe that is demanded of these people. The next time someone says there's no such place as Chattanooga, if I'm feeling nice, I might let them know Chattanooga is real.
Until next time, my little novelty tea strainers!
X! X!
Pandora
Pandora and her daughter, Gertrude
Pandora is a graduate of The School of Life and Stuffies. She lives in middle Tennessee with her daughter, Gertrude, her editor and handler, Jas Faulkner, Jas' Mother, and a small tabby cat who thinks she knows everything.