Image: Honk Gong Free Press
If you’re a parent, you’ve more than likely heard of YouTube Kids, a platform designed to provide a safe and age-appropriate viewing experience for children.
However, a dark side to this platform emerged a few years ago, known as “Elsagate”. And, unfortunately, despite YouTube’s claimes to have cracked down on it, we can’t safely say that this is a trend that is over just yet.
What is Elsagate?
Elsagate was a disturbing trend where creators upload seemingly innocent children’s videos that, after a few minutes, take a very disturbing turn.
These videos often featured popular children’s characters in sexually suggestive or violent contexts. The aim was to lure young children into watching explicit content, often without their parents’ knowledge.
The name “Elsagate” originated from one of the most prominent channels involved in this practice, which used the character Elsa from Disney’s “Frozen.” However, this term has since expanded to include a broader range of disturbing content targeting children.
What has been done about it?
While YouTube has claimed to have taken steps to address this issue by improving its content moderation and removing such disturbing videos, it’s not safe to say that YouTube Kids is rid of dangers and safe for kids.
This issue highlights the challenges of policing user-generated content on such a massive platform like YouTube, which incentivizes creators to make content that keeps people’s attention glued to the screen–including your kids. This is the same mechanism behind algorithmic creep – the algorithm recommending progressively more stimulating content regardless of its quality or appropriateness.
Even if the Elsagate phenomenon might be over for now, it’s just a matter of time until another disturbing trend comes along. In fact, the rise of AI-generated children’s content is exactly that next trend – here’s how to recognise it and what to do about it.
For example, right now, did you know that there are hundreds of YouTube videos from creators teaching their audience on how to use popular AI tools to make entire channels for YouTube Kids for passive income?
Since YouTube doesn’t seem to prioritize the quality of content creators post under the guise of being “for kids,” wouldn’t you rather take control instead of relying on creators to decide what’s appropriate for your children to learn?
What can you do about it?
At StreamU, we empower you to choose what your kids watch, putting control back in your hands instead of leaving it up to algorithms or creator intentions.
We know firsthand the immense educational value that genuine YouTube creators offer—yet many of these creators don’t get algorithmic preference simply because their channels aren’t “attention-grabby” or designed primarily for kids.
With StreamU, you take the wheel to build a safe, educational environment that lets your kids benefit from YouTube’s best content, without the risks.
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