My son is still young, almost 8, so I’m speaking for near that age level. He doesn’t get unrestricted access to YouTube. If he’s watching YouTube, it’s with one of us present and helping him navigate it. He always wants to watch the video that’s the lowest quality shit just based on the thumbnail, because they have thumbnails that stick out. I’ve taught him about “low quality” content and we’ve watched a couple so he could understand what I meant. Now, when he wants to watch something like that, I say “no, that’s going to be low quality,” he seems to understand and we move on to find something else.
Eventually, I’m going to let him navigate YouTube alone sometimes, and then go back and look at his watch history to see how things are going. He doesn’t know watch history is a thing, nor will I ever tell him. If things go off the rails, we will guide them back to the rails slowly and nonjudgmentally
That said, we were at a restaurant the other day and a woman was there with her baby and a friend. She set that infant in a high chair with AI slop on her phone right in its face. The kid definitely didn’t disturb her conversation, because it looked like a zombie. Godspeed, child
Look into DeArrow (by same creators of SponsorBlock), which offers crowdsourced “de-clickbaited” video titles and thumbnails.
While it’s nice to just avoid the clickbait while enjoying potentially genuinely good videos, I ended up uninstalling the extension. I want to explicitly avoid clickbait, and focus on encouraging and supporting creators that don’t use it. Also, if I end up unknowingly interacting with too many clickbait-y videos, I worry the algorithm will push me more of that.
Unfortunately this is an increasingly unviable strategy, because even “good” creators have started using clickbaity titles and thumbnails, even if their content has remained the same. Some have even retroactively changed the titles/thumbnails of their older videos to this style.
Clickbait is engineered by behavioural scientists to be as addictive as possible, and has been proven to trigger similar neural pathways to other addictions, such as drug or gambling.
Basically every creator with a shred of self awareness has admitted that they hate creating clickbait thumbnails, titles, and phrases like smash that like button and subscribe; they end up doing it anyway because A/B testing with randomised thumbnails and titles clearly show that they work.
The live A/B testing in particular obscures whether a creator employs clickbait or not - you may be under the impression that a certain creator has remained principled, when in reality you were just allocated to the control group by chance.
I feel that it’s one of those situations where the game is rigged, and the only way to “win” is to change the rules yourself.
Unpopular opinion: I have a second phone logged into my kid’s YT account. I train the algorithm while he’s sleeping.
It takes a significant time, and YouTube doesn’t have good options for blocking content, but it helps keep out the worst of the brainrot.
I’m not sure whether to be scared or impressed by that. Both, I guess.
Damn good answer. Proud of you
So, basically a future “people of walmart” 20 years before it happens. So like an orgin story for idiocy.
I am a very progressive parent. I was harassed by my parents for spending too much time on the computer and I make 6 figures working in tech now and spend 8 hours a day minimum on the computer. When I say I’m progressive I’m not exaggerating. Robotics are the future of humanity. Understanding tech is the future 6 figure job my kid will have. First and foremost I pay for YT premium to avoid the constant barrage of unreviewed ads. Secondly I take a night every week to go through her watch history and remove some videos that are questionable for the algorithm. I also block channels in the suggested area and block watched makers if they are slop or … bad…
I also tell her she is allowed to watch shorts but ONLY if she is able to watch longer form content above all. I do not believe in tik tok and that started way before trumps cronies owned it. I believe tik tok type consumption is one of those things that will come in a fad and ease out of fad.
I also watch sometimes with her to identify Ai slop and I show her videos if I ever fall for Ai. I got really excited about a fox video the other day that turned out to be ai and I showed her and she recognized the Ai tells before I did.
This allows a kid to explore technology without pressure or fear but avoids the Ai stuff. I also have her lookup facts if I know them to be wrong. We watch a lot of dar man because its child friendly but boy fact checking those videos are a riot.
She is very smart so I rarely have to do anything now but she started yt back when those creepy vilent Elsa videos were popular. So I have been using this method for 6 years. She is a tech wiz, she is smart, made high honor roll, her focus is still intact and she does well at school.
This was also important to me. I also noticed some channels which were satire of middle schoolers would influence her behavior, so we talk about it. Then if the behavior continues ues I block the channel. Later she can watch again if she feels she is strong minded enough. Some weird pov YouTube rs were cut off for a year but have been allowed back as she is not pliable in those ways anymore.
Anyways thats the most serious and in depth answer. I hate to pay for YouTube but its the best way to keep her on a single platform with the most visibility and I can adjust the algorithm through her history
You can limit shorts in the YouTube parental settings! Just found out about this a few weeks ago
You can’t disable them completely, but you can set a time limit
How do you block channels? Is that a premium feature?
There’s an option “Don’t recommend videos from this channel” when you click on three-dots of the recommended video.
Thanks! I shall try that and see if that helps.
You sound like a great parent, and this should ideally be how every parent teaches their kids. Trust, open discussion, and a welcoming environment for questions.
Only whitelist content or creators you personally have vetted with apps like YouTube kids, jellyfin, etc until you can trust their own decision making. Then share an account so that you can see watch history (and hopefully your good media choices influenced their tastes as you would share an algorithm)
(disclaimer: I’m not a parent, so this is just what I think I would do with a hypothetical child)
How old is the said kid? If 5 or older, I’d have a talk with them about the following points: 1. what generative AI is, 2. why it’s bad/why I don’t want them to watch slop, and 3. how to recognise it, all adjusted so that a kid can grasp those things.
Another thing is to make sure they don’t spend all or most of their time on screens, but instead ensure that they have the resources and attention to do normal, screenless kid things.
My kid doesnt have internet access
As in, his pc in his room has no internet
When he plays online in the living room he isnt allowed to go to the browser unless i am there to tell him what to type or which site to go on
And he has no smartphone etc, just a dumb ass nokia
My kid is 11
If you don’t show them better content, they can’t know the difference. Watch YT with them, but put on good stuff made by humans. There’s plenty of that. Also consider accounts - once they have their own account they will tumble down the shit hole that is the algorithm. If you let them use your account, they will have a better established base, and you will easily see what they are watching. If this doesn’t work for you, created a moderated, shared account that you use and populate with good algorithm juju.
Hard restrictions of devices based on age. No smartphones or tablets until high school. No social media until 16.
Lots of activities.
Great way to make sure your kid gets bullied and socially excluded, resulting in lifelong trauma. Not to mention that they will then start using the internet with the media literacy of an average 70 year old and fall for everything they should’ve learned with parental guidance at a young age.
Well, the oldest is 14 has no bullying, went to the worlds for robotics and has a great group of friends. So maybe your fears are just your fears.
Edit: they have technology, but using a laptop during specific times has little to none of the dopamine hacking mobiles give, yet all the communication and information required.
It’s not really that hard with my son 13, I monitor what he’s doing discreetly using apps and just listening to what he’s doing. I make sure to explain to him what I find acceptable and I give him space and freedom to make mistakes but I’m also clear about the consequences. I don’t let him out of sight or ear shot.
My daughter 5 on the other hand is much tougher, she likes to watch slop and I have to limit it block shows or apps that have “free streaming” because the garbage is everywhere. She doesn’t understand or know the difference, she doesn’t see the overt government or corporate propaganda and low effort quality, she just sees bright colors and happy cartoons and signing. Here’s hoping my efforts aren’t for not.
Otherwise, just keep them off the black hole that is social media (Facebook/Instagram/tweeter and their clones) because there’s nothing good or redeemable there, limit YouTube and similar sites, take part in their lives while also giving the space to make decisions, don’t completely cut out AI but encourage creativeness using all of the tools available to them, encourage quality over quantity, instill healthy values, be flexible, and treat them like young humans. Treating them like young humans also means setting boundaries, being firm, standing your ground and being consistent. They’re humans not flowers. The values part is probably the hardest part to impart because what everyone themselves value doesn’t necessarily mean the same thing to everyone else and life is full of contradictions so they need to be able to decide who/what/when/where is the right choice and completely denying everything will blow up in your or their faces.
The values we teach them as parents is what will allow them to decide when is the right time to allow AI content as something acceptable and give them the knowledge for how to use it to their advantage. AI isn’t going away so don’t run away from it, but that doesn’t mean we have to accept the shit corporations are cramming down our throats or allow it to run our lives and raise our kids.
It’s a long war and a lot of people give up or declare victory too soon. Never give up, never surrender, because one day you will be old and AI will be running your life support machines and I hope someone’s lazy kid didn’t half ass train it because they grew up watching Cocomelon.
I monitor what he’s doing discreetly using apps and just listening to what he’s doing.
I feel happy about growing up with the beginning of the internet…
We had to use a family computer in a shared space. Not a tablet or phone that could be used unmonitored. Just because it wasn’t a technical measure doing the monitoring doesn’t mean we were unmonitored.
I don’t have kids but I keep seeing iPad baby slop and it’s disturbing to me and it’s one of the reasons why i probably won’t have any
Don’t give them full access to the internet until college.
You can’t unless you block social media which includes YouTube. At the end of the day, with my 8yo, I’m taking the approach of using parental controls to limit exposure to content he shouldn’t see and then doing my best to ensure he knows how to spot AI videos in their current state.
Raise them in the woods with no access to the outside world until the age of forty.
You can’t, and shouldn’t try. Spending time in moderation is more important, so limit that. Sure when they’re little you have to open restrictions over time but keep the focus on recognizing ai slop and understanding the issues with it.
Sooner than you think, they’re watching is out of your control so it quickly becomes critical for them learn about
Removed by mod
