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After announcing plans to reinstate accounts banned for COVID-19 and election misinformation last month, YouTube officially rolled out the “second chance” program on Thursday.
Creators eligible for the comeback will see an option to request a new channel in their YouTube Studio account over the next few weeks. To view the option, they will have to log in with credentials for their terminated channel.
Not all banned accounts will be allowed to return. Those banned for copyright infringement or a violation of the platform’s Creator Responsibility policies won’t see the option. The same goes for anyone who deleted their YouTube channel or Google account following the ban.
A return is possible for creators whose previous content doesn’t violate its existing Community Guidelines, meaning if a creator was banned for violating a policy YouTube has now retired, they’ll be able to submit a return request.
Things won’t be easy after that, though. YouTube will evaluate requests based on a number of factors, such as whether the creator has consistently violated the platform’s Community Guidelines or Terms of Service. It will also check whether the creator’s off-platform activity “harmed or may continue to harm the YouTube community, like channels that endanger kids’ safety.”
Once a creator is allowed to return, they’ll have to start from scratch: zero subscribers, zero videos.
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Even to join the YouTube Partner Program and monetize their channel, they will have to meet the required number of subscribers and watch hours. One advantage for creators here is that they can re-upload an old video that doesn’t violate the platform’s Community Guidelines. This way, they can quickly create a library and start regaining their reach.
The move arrives just weeks after Google told House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan of Ohio that it would allow some channels banned over repeated violations of COVID-19 and election integrity policies to make a return.
Jordan was investigating YouTube for allegedly censoring lawful speech, and, in its letter, Google said that the channels were banned after the Biden administration “created a political atmosphere that sought to influence the actions of platforms based on their concerns regarding misinformation.” It further stated that it’s “unacceptable and wrong when any government, including the Biden administration, attempts to dictate how the company moderates content.”
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Jibin is a tech news writer based out of Ahmedabad, India. Previously, he served as the editor of iGeeksBlog and is a self-proclaimed tech enthusiast who loves breaking down complex information for a broader audience.
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