Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Mobile
  3. News

YouTube Kids hit by fresh complaints, this time over junk food videos

By

youtube kids comes under fire again
Image used with permission by copyright holder
U.S. consumer groups are still not happy with YouTube Kids, the supposedly family-friendly mobile app that launched back in February.

While earlier complaints focused on the app’s failure to filter out videos with sexual content, colorful expletives, and ads for adult products such as alcohol, the most recent objections accuse some food and drink manufacturers of breaking promises not to aim promotional content at children.

Recommended Videos

The groups – the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood (CCFC) and the Center for Digital Democracy (CDD) – this week filed new complaints with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) asking it to investigate not only Google, which owns YouTube, but also more than 15 food and beverage makers – Coca-Cola, Hershey, and Nestle among them – that have promotional content appearing on the app.

“Far from being a safe place for kids to explore, YouTube Kids is awash with food and beverage marketing that you won’t find on other media platforms for young children,” CCFC’s Josh Golin said in a release, adding that the FTC “should investigate why Google’s algorithms aren’t configured to keep junk food marketing off of YouTube Kids, and hold food and beverage companies accountable for violating their pledges not to target their most unhealthy products to children.”

youtube kids
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Speaking in stronger terms, CDD executive director Jeff Chester said, “Our new complaints underscore why the FTC needs to stop Google from engaging in what are nothing less than harmful, unethical, and irresponsible practices that target America’s youngest children.”

One of many examples offered by the CCFC reveals that Coca-Cola has so far shown 47 TV ads on YouTube Kids as well as 11 promotional videos.

YouTube told the Guardian the app only shows ads “that are approved as family-friendly – for example, we don’t show any food and beverage ads – and all ads undergo a rigorous review process for compliance with our policies.” If that sounds odd, that’s because this apparently refers only to YouTube-managed pre-roll ads that play in slots between the main videos.

If a brand uploads a TV ad to YouTube as a regular video, it skirts the policy as they are seen as videos not ads. It appears YouTube’s algorithms are then failing to root them out.

While YouTube has said that turning off the app’s search function can limit access to these kinds of videos, the consumer groups are keen for the company to take other action such as adjusting the app’s algorithms to prevent the content from turning up in search results.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Trevor Mogg
Trevor Mogg
Contributing Editor
Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…
Don’t watch this YouTube video if you have a Pixel 7
Someone holding the Google Pixel 7 Pro.

Reports of another "cursed" piece of content have been making the internet rounds as a video on YouTube has been causing Pixel devices to crash. The video, a clip from the 1979 movie Alien, seems to cause Pixel 7, Pixel 7 Pro, and some Pixel 6 and Pixel 6a smartphones to instantly reboot without warning.

As first reported on Reddit and spotted by Mishaal Rahman, the video will begin to play for only a second or two and then instantly reboot the Pixel 7 it's being played on. Digital Trends can confirm the bug to be active and working, too, with the video instantly rebooting a Pixel 7 Pro we tested it on.

Read more
This YouTube Apple Watch app is just as ridiculous as you’d expect
this youtube apple watch app is just as ridiculous youd expect watchtube

The Apple Watch has allowed users to do everything from calling their family and friends to keeping tabs on their health. But its media streaming abilities have been restricted to music, podcasts, and audiobooks. That's about to change, as now you'll be able to watch your favorite YouTube videos on your wrist thanks to a new app called WatchTube.

Created by Hugo Mason, WatchTube gives access to every YouTube video through the app, and you can hear the videos either through the Apple Watch's built-in speaker or with a pair of Bluetooth headphones. However, the app cannot be linked to your YouTube account in any way as it's a third-party app that just happens to carry the word "Tube" in its name. That said, you'll still be able to search and subscribe to your favorite content creators.

Read more
Finding recipes on TikTok and YouTube is my new favorite way to cook
Someone taking a picture of a llama cookie.

As an avid baker, I've always hated searching for a recipe on Google and subsequently wading through the extensive backstory of the baker to find it. It's like a buried treasure hunt — only it's painfully slow. One thing I do love, however, is how succinct video recipes are from TikTok and YouTube.

I never have to wonder what the food looks like on these apps; I see and hear almost every step in a way I know I can replicate. And I learn a lot more from them than written recipes teach me. So that got me thinking: What is the best way to bake with video recipes? Will using a quick one-minute video from TikTok be enough, or will a more in-depth 10-minute recipe from YouTube be better?

Read more