- YouTube is racist.
That is what some are saying when they look at the situation
that we're gonna talk about for today's first story.
Right, so at the center of this you have
online creator CoryxKenshin putting out a new video
where he asks this big question.
- YouTube, you guys either play favorites,
you are racist, or it's a mix of the two.
These are the three options, YouTube.
Which one is it?
- Right, so that video was posted yesterday.
It is currently number one trending,
and in that video, Cory outlines how he thinks
that YouTube and its algorithm are racist
and age-restrict videos from Black creators
when non-Black creators who post similar content
don't see the same consequences, and with his saying
he's felt this for a while but never wanted to call it out.
- I never wanna be that guy, "Oh, it's 'cause I'm Black.
Oh, these issues are happening 'cause I'm Black."
This time, I can no longer let it slide.
- With Cory then explaining last week,
he uploaded a video where he played The Mortuary Assistant,
and it got age-restricted, and you know,
he's not the only creator doing that, so he's like,
"Okay, perfect time to compare and contrast."
He looks at other creators playing that same game,
and it seemed like he was the only one who got restricted,
so he appealed the decision, but it got rejected.
He then reaches out to his YouTube contact,
who says that maybe it happened because
at the end of the video, he includes a part of the game
that involves a character battling depression.
So Cory's like, "Okay, was I the only one
that featured that same part?"
But then he stumbles
across another creator's video, Markiplier.
Right, he's one of the biggest creators on the platform.
Cory's saying he has a lotta respect for Markiplier.
He's not trying to drag him into this whole mess, but.
- Your channel just happens to be a great reference point
because A, you're a really big YouTuber,
and B, you're not Black, so I can look at your channel,
and then I can look at my channel or look
at anyone else's channel and make sure
that the things and the games that you play,
that they're enforcing the rules equally to everybody.
- And Cory's saying that when he looked at it,
Markiplier included the same content,
but he wasn't age-restricted,
so he reached out to his contact again
to kinda be like, "So okay, what's the deal then?"
His contact then says, "I'll contact the policy team
and have them look at it," and then
that video gets unrestricted, which understandably shocked
Cory considering they already rejected his appeal.
Right, he thought if anything,
I'm accidentally screwing this other guy.
They're gonna double down.
They're gonna restrict Markiplier's video, but saying.
- But they looked at Mark's video,
and they used that to verify my innocence.
- And so with all of that, Cory sends his YouTube rep
an email saying, "Hey, I think there's racism
and favoritism at play here, and I wanna sit down
with the policy team to talk things out."
Right, wanting to see are human beings doing this?
Is it automated? What's going on?
Or because he doesn't feel
like this is an isolated incident.
Right, every time he comes back to YouTube, he's trending
for a bit, but then something happens to knock him down.
So then, oh, my God, his rep says,
"Okay, I'm gonna go to work for you.
We're gonna answer these questions,"
and after a few days, they re-age-restrict his video.
(air whooshing) (modem squealing)
And then go on to age-restrict Markiplier's video as well.
- They got caught with their pants down.
They got called out, and then they had to go back
and say, "Oh, whoa, whoa, whoa, okay,
we see the narrative that he's kinda pushing here.
We need to take some steps back.
We need to just age-restrict them both and be done with it."
- With Cory adding he knows he can't directly prove
that race had anything to do with this,
but he added that we just don't know much about the people
behind closed doors at YouTube that calls these shots,
and saying he feels this way especially
since this always happens to him
right when he's seeing a lotta growth.
- And it always just comes off like,
"We can't let this Black guy get too high up."
- As well as saying, sure, he could be proved wrong here,
and if he is proved wrong, he would apologize,
but this is how it feels.
- I believe there is some racism involved
within the policy team, and YouTube in general
really doesn't care about Black people like that.
- Right, with Cory saying, "Yeah, they do spotlight
Black creators, but that doesn't mean anything.
It's fake.
They have their favorites and all that stuff.
It's just for show," with Cory arguing,
"Instead of pandering when a Black creator
comes to you and says that they're being treated
differently, don't do some weird song and dance.
Actually do something to correct those wrongs."
Also, this video, according to Cory,
has been flagged for ad suitability,
and the response to this video has been very, very big,
tons of comments and support commending him
for speaking out, saying this issue deserves attention.
We're seeing people on Twitter calling out YouTube
for flagging the video.
Large creators like WiDion saying, "Susan Wojcicki
should sit down with Cory and discuss these issues,"
and of course, with this story,
I'd love to know your thoughts,
but it's gonna be very interesting to see what happens here.
Right, because this feels too big for YouTube to ignore.
Right, Cory's not just some random creator.
He has over 14 million subscribers on the platform.
He's only posted four videos in the last, I think,
four months, and even with that, he got 100 million views
in the last 30 days, and only time will tell
how big this snowball gets.
- [Announcer] It woulda never got this outta hand
if it wasn't for that DeFranco guy.
- Let's watch some crazy stuff, yo!
(remote clicking) (static hissing)
- Kids been doing drugs.
- I thought this was a commercial.
What's going on? I mean-
- Relax, Morty. Don't worry about it.
Let's just see where this goes.
- That is my way of paraphrasing the results
from this new survey by the National Institutes of Health.
Young adults are using marijuana and hallucinogens
at an all-time record high, specifically finding
that between April and October of 2021,
adults 19-30 used one of the substances at the highest rates
since the agency first began recording in 1988.
For weed, nearly 42.6% reported using pot in the last year,
28.5% in the last month, around 10.8% on a daily basis,
and it's a very significant jump from just five years ago,
and then when it comes to hallucinogens in this age group,
eight out of 100 said they consumed hallucinogenic drugs
in 2021, nearly double of what we saw five years ago,
but also, the closer you look at the situation,
the less surprising this trend is.
It was about a decade ago when we first saw Colorado
and Washington legalize it.
Since then, 17 other states have followed suit,
another 13 legalizing medical use.
Also, there's really not a stigma around it as much anymore,
and while hallucinogens between the two are obviously
more taboo, experts are saying they're seeing
a similar trend with those.
There are more and more mainstream conversations happening
around these drugs, and it's in addition
to an increasing number of jurisdictions
moving to decriminalize
certain hallucinogens, specifically mushrooms.
There's also been this growing movement of people
utilizing drug-assisted therapies using substances
like MDMA and ketamine, and while anecdotal,
I'll say I know some people that do this,
and it's been fucking game-changing for them.
I mean, it feels like every week or every month,
there's some new, big study.
One of the most recent ones was talking
about how psilocybin, or magic mushrooms,
it could actually help people stop heavy drinking,
but of course, with this, you still have people concerned
about this massive jump.
With for example, Dr. Nora Volkow,
the Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse,
which publishes the annual survey,
saying, "Overall, the results are very concerning.
What they tell us is that the problem of substance abuse
among young people has gotten worse in this country
and that the pandemic with all its mental stressors
and turmoil has likely contributed to the rise,"
and while my opinions on hallucinogens and marijuana
seem to differ with this person,
and I think we're gonna have a disagreement
about what all this means, still, I think
that if we continue to look at the data,
we find very good news, and that is that I found
a historically low use of cigarettes, alcohol,
and opioids in this same year,
though that's probably only meaningful
with opioids and alcohol since the cigarettes,
that's just getting replaced with vaping,
but hey, with all that said, I like to ask these questions
now and then because people's opinions change with time.
What are your thoughts right now
about hallucinogens and marijuana?
- [Announcer] So shout-out, Philly D. Okay.
Philly, can I get some more thumbnails, please?
I gotta get more outrageous here.
(air whooshing) - And then, you know,
being careful when you're online is key
because when you're not careful,
hackers can gain access to your computer,
your bank account info, or worse,
and it's on that note of security
that I wanna take a second to thank
the fantastic partner and sponsor of today's show,
NordVPN, and more directly, NordVPN.com/Phil.
NordVPN is an international company focusing
on security, convenience, and access to content.
They've also expanded their operations,
and there's a lotta new features that come
with the software that makes it worth the investment,
like Nord's Threat Protection feature.
It neutralizes cyber threats before they can do
any real damage to your device.
It makes browsing safer, smoother,
and helps identify malware-ridden files,
stopping me from landing on malicious websites,
and blocking trackers and intrusive ads on the spot,
and get this: once you enable Threat Protection,
it's constantly on the lookout,
even when you're not connected to a VPN.
I love that these functions are at work
in the background all the time.
I don't even have to think about it,
so head on over to NordVPN.com/Phil
to get a huge discount off a two-year plan
and, wait for it: four months free.
It's an absolutely incredible deal, seriously.
So that's NordVPN.com/Phil.
It's all risk-free with Nord's 30-day money back guarantee.
(energetic music)
(air whooshing) It's socialism.
That is what Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell
and many other Republicans are calling
Biden's loan forgiveness, calling the policy
astonishingly unfair, and saying, "President Biden's
student loan socialism is a slap in the face
to every family who sacrificed to save for college,
every graduate who paid their debt,
and every American who chose a certain career path
or volunteered to serve in our Armed Forces
in order to avoid taking on debt,"
Senator Ted Cruz also calling this
"a Hail Mary before the midterms,"
which hey, is a statement that the cynical part
of my brain does not dismiss.
It can be two things at the same time,
a political move and at the same time,
something that genuinely will help millions of Americans.
Now, with all that, I will say something that's surprising
is, you know, we knew that Republicans
were gonna push back on this, but we've actually seen
a decent amount of pushback from a number of Democrats,
especially with more censorious Democrats,
people like Representative Tim Ryan.
He's an Ohio Senate nominee, and he said,
"Waiving debt for those already on a trajectory
to financial security sends the wrong message
to millions of Ohioans without a degree
working just as hard to make ends meet,"
as well as Democrat and former Treasury Secretary
Larry Summers saying, "Every dollar spent
on student loan relief is a dollar that could have gone
to support those who don't get an opportunity
to go to college."
We've also seen competing narratives
regarding who this is actually going to help,
with a number of people citing an independent study
form the Penn Wharton Budget Model,
which said that knocking out $10,000 for people
making less than $125,000 a year would cost the government
$300 billion, also saying that, "At minimum,
69% of the debt forgiven would go to households
in the top 60% of the income distribution,"
but we've seen pushback against that
from Biden and his administration,
saying that among other things, with the income cap,
the relief's gonna make sure the money goes
to who needs it most, and saying that 90% of those affected
by this loan forgiveness are gonna be households
making $75,000 or less per year,
but also, while all of this is happening,
you still have a number of Democrats pushing
against this, saying, "Hey, this doesn't do enough,"
with some saying even more debt needs to be forgiven,
but even more, pointing to the fact that college,
the cost is insane.
The cost situation has gone up in a way
that's just, it doesn't make any sense,
and because of that, this is just kind of a small Band-Aid
on a gushing wound, and you know, it's been a while
since I went to college, so when I saw reports
about the price of college now, it's insane.
Reportedly, per The College Board,
average in-state tuition for a four-year public university
is $9,410 per year, and if you're an out-of-state student,
that's 23,890 per year, and then if you're looking
at a private university, right, if you take into account
all four years to get a diploma, it averages to $130,000.
Meanwhile, last year, the median family income before taxes
was less than $80,000, and that's without the books,
the room, the boards, that that's in what?
And of course, why wouldn't these greedy colleges continue
to raise the prices?
In their eyes, they essentially have
a money-printing machine, and no one's really keeping them
in check because in this country,
debt's just considered a part of life,
which is why, for a while now, we've seen people
floating possible solutions, though not gaining
a ton of traction.
Some ideas include revoking the tax-exempt status
of schools that exceed tuition inflation limits.
Some also think it would be a good idea to deny
federal research grants to a number of schools,
with the belief this could rein in
especially large public and private universities,
but for now, that's where we are,
and we'll have to wait to see what happens.
- [Announcer] Thoughts on Philip DeFranco's comments?
That guy's channel's still relevant?
(air whooshing) - And then, you know,
it's been exactly three months to the day
since a gunman walked into Robb Elementary
and slaughtered 19 children and two teachers,
and now, the latest update that we have
to this situation came during a school board meeting
to determine what should be done
about Police Chief Pete Arredondo.
Right, he was the guy who wasted an hour trying to talk
to the shooter, trying to get into nearby classrooms,
and waiting for keys to the one that the shooter was in,
even though it was unlocked, with them reportedly choosing
not to attend the meeting yesterday,
saying that he had received death threats
and didn't feel safe, but him not being there
didn't stop community members from pouring in
to this high school auditorium
and unleashing their anger on the school board.
- If it was one of your children,
heads would be rolling right now,
but because it's not, you don't care!
- I have messages for Pete Arredondo
and all the law enforcement that were there that date.
Turn in your badge, and step down.
You don't deserve to wear one!
- With people in the audience shouting, "Cowards,"
and, "No justice, no peace."
Brett Cross, an uncle of one of the victims
unexpectedly jumping on stage and handing a letter
to the board demanding that it hold deliberations
out in the open.
- Do not take this into closed sessions.
We deserve to hear.
Our babies are dead.
Our teachers are dead.
Our parents are dead.
The least y'all can do is show us the respect
to do this in the public.
- Others backing up, but after all of that,
the school board goes into a closed session.
They come back around 90 minutes later, and this happened.
- Mr. Board President, I move that good cause exists
to terminate the non-certified contract
of Pete Arredondo effective immediately.
- Hearing none, all in favor?
Motion passed unanimously.
- Are you hearing some light applause, some people yelling?
Otherwise, though, it's a bittersweet reaction.
Yes, Arredondo has lost his job, some people seeing that
as accountability, but these families still have to live
the rest of their lives with empty chairs
at the dinner table, and as far as what Arredondo
has had to say about this, right, was he humble?
Was he apologetic?
He was no, fuck, no, instead, releasing a statement
through his lawyer blasting the whole meeting
and saying, "Chief Arredondo will not participate
in his own illegal and unconstitutional public lynching
and respectfully requests the board
immediately reinstate him with all back pay and benefits
and close the complaint as unfounded,
alleging that the board fired him
without giving him a chance to publicly clear his name,
effectively defaming him, and defending his actions
at the shooting, saying that he and his officers
saved as many lives as they could with the tools available,
and claiming that Arredondo is being forced
into the role of the fall guy, the sacrificial lamb,
with him even accusing the Department of Public Safety head
of racism, saying that when we blamed Arredondo,
it was a smoke screen attempt to blame the Mexicans.
So yeah, that's where that fucking mess is right now,
and so we'll have to wait to see what happens,
but in the meantime, let me know your thoughts on this one,
but ultimately that is where that story
and today's show ends.
As always, thank you for watching and subscribing
to my daily dives in the news, and if you want more news,
I got you covered here or in the links down below,
but of course, as always, my name's Philip DeFranco.
You've just been filled in.
I love yo faces, and I'll see you tomorrow.