A QAnon pizza shop defined Hillary. Two can play the same game. Truth and facts are also an orientation. Get with the program.

but remember, the right wing websites are even better at click bait.

I have seen a lot of headlines over the years declaring that Krasnov has had every illness known to mankind and is on his death bed.

The truth of matter is that Krasnov is 79 years old and without makeup (putty) he would look white as a ghost, and without curling his 5 hairs around his head he would be balder than a cue ball.

As you say, the videos are usually nothing like the headlines. These commentators churn out a lot of content, but it's low quality.

Many of the headlines make claims that are mostly wishful thinking, which I understand because I wish they were true!

to you and to all others who commented on this. very relevant and a good reminder. facts don't need to be shouted or hyped. this admin is bad enough, we don't have to be bombastic. again thanks for bringing this up.

... with capital letters, I ain't watching it.

If it's a lefty operating out of his closet promising a video that they chop to pieces with repeated explanations of who or what we just saw followed by another fractional cut that could not stand alone and then wash and repeat. I drop that lefty.

I wish more were like Bryan Taylor Cohen.

or other hyperbole is an automatic ignore for me.

under the pretense of bringing the real story of many subjects. I notice a lot of them around the tariffs with Canada that are citing absolute BS as facts. A simple google search will debunk most of their claims. I have found many many have popped up about the tariff situation with Canada making outrageous claims like Canada provides the US with 90% of their oil imports (60%) and 98% of electricity (2%-3%). I report everyone of them but new ones pop up daily, likely from the same sources. I only actually watch videos from sources I can trust but I will watch these others for just a minute or two so I can report them as misinformation to youtube.

I think there are too many videos posted here in this category. I wish folks would post them in the video category. .....

I may not be posting a popular opinion but it's what I feel. One of these days I will be able to buy a computer and get off this cruddy little tablet.

to surf on DU as well as my phone. I hardly ever use my laptop. I think I'm saving it for a time that I really need one, God knows when. I don't know what kind of tablet you're using, but I never have trouble watching videos on my tablets. Those things are pretty cheap, so if you don't want to wait until you can get a computer, you should check them out.

This along with continuing to rely on x-shits instead of actual discussion is disappointing at best.

I’m talking about individuals who share our perspective. They’re also looking for income, as are the rest of us. I’m not saying these people shouldn’t post, and they’re welcome to do anything. They like, I’m just making a statement About the enticement of the headlines.

You are giving Trump more power. Just in the last few days, he has threatened military action in Mexico, The Supreme Court is considering overturning gay marriage and Trump took over DC. This is more important than a video. FOCUS!!

Not lefty (necessarily) websites, but I follow many leftys on Youtube. Here is a sample of buzzwords from the thumbnails today (Monday 8/11/25)-
Trump in panic mode
Trump calls emergency
Bernie drops HUGE announcement
Trump gets nightmare news
Fox News just stunned Trump
Paranoid Trump goes nuts

a general attack on everyone who posts videos on DU, as others have done in the past.

I don’t disagree that the hyperbolic titles chosen by the people who create these videos (not by the people who post them on DU) are often annoying at best.

When they are re-posted on DU, posters typically try to preserve the original title, which (unless you’re posting in LBN) is not required, but in theory should be not be a problem.

However, the way modern videos are presented also often falls afoul of that age-old message board standard, which is “don’t post titles in all caps because it reads like you’re shouting at people.”

Of course this TACTIC is nowadays frequently DEPLOYED because it’s EFFECTIVE at grabbing ATTENTION. At the same time, it gets tiring to read after a while.

As always, my recommendation to avoid almost all of this is to simply trash the Liberal YouTubers forum, which is where 99% of these titles are posted. However, since that does not hide the video titles from the home page, it may be time for DU to request that these titles are “decapitalized” when re-posted, or even rewritten to ensure that the title matches the content of the video.

It might be difficult to explain this to people though — there isn’t a perfect enforcement method. I’ll have to keep thinking on it.

Liberal YouTube and Cable news clips can take up the entire "new in Issue forums" feeds.
They do right now.
This prevents posts that are really issues from being seen easily
Perhaps they could have their own "New in media forums" section at the bottom of the "New in..." category.

The Cable News Clips forum mostly hosts short sections from stories that are featured on CNN, MSNBC, etc. so the headlines are usually no more sensationalistic than any other piece of news reporting you might see reposted on DU.

Liberal YouTubers, however, is almost entirely videos made by people whose livelihood is dependent on getting clicks and eyeballs on social media, and the titles of the videos often reflect that.

I'll consider removing Liberal YouTubers from the home page video selection, at least -- I don't think it would be technically difficult to do that, although I'll have to check. For other areas on the site though, like the Latest page, it seems to me that individual DUers can easily trash that forum themselves if they don't want to see the titles. I know that the sensationalistic video titles do crop up from time to time in other forums, but the vast majority of them appear to be in Liberal YouTubers.

but haven't quite gotten to the point of blocking cable news clips, for the reasons you state. The feed is the only place I run across Liberal YouTubers anymore.

videos under those ridiculously bombastic titles. Adam Mockler and Luke Beasley are two of the creators I like who present good content.

Adam usually presents shorter segments focused on a particular news event or topic vaguely related to the hyperbolic shoutline of the thumbnail. He's part of the Meidas Touch network (all of their videos also sport the annoying all caps, frantic, at best slightly accurate descriptors.)

Luke does this, too, in addition to his daily hourish-long, chatty, amusing live show for his subscribers that is later available for everyone. He reads out viewer comments and replies, and in doing this occasionally responds to complaints about the click-bait thumbnails--his always have his face in an exaggerated OMFG!!! expression--admittung they're silly but necessary for the almigjty algorithm.

I hate that that's true because it's another case of this modern generally hyperbolic, reality-twisting world, of which Felon 47 is the despicable, raging figurehead. But I get that these people understand the YouTube algorithm and see what drives engagement. Unfortunately it's not calm, accurate titles & thumbnails.

We cut the cable long ago & only have regular YouTube (premium to avoid the ads) and came across Luke & Adam's shows/podcasts. Like the Meidas Touch main channel, I avoided them because of the obnoxious thumbnails. But one day, out of curiosity, I took the bait and clicked. I was surprised to find worthwhile content.

I'm lousy at judging ages, but I believe both Adam & Luke are pretty young. Luke has told his age, which is 22, iirc. At the first few protests I attended this year--the first in the middle of a small college town even!--my friends & I were super disappointed that most of the attendees appeared to be Boomers. I saw almost no one who looked below 50. Hooray for the Boomers & everyone who protested, but it was so discouraging that very few of the younger people in town bothered to attend.

Adam Mockler & Luke Beasley, who both see the Pussy-Grabber-in Chief & his cult exactly as horrendous as they are give me hope. They have loads of subscribers & patrons. Seeing them wholeheartedly rejecting the MAGA movement and preaching it for all to see & hear is encouraging at a time when so much is crushingly disheartening.

Because like a lot of other folks here, I’m turned off by the titles, which is a shame really. The techniques you have to use to get attention on social media don’t translate as well when you don’t have to yell to make yourself heard — on a site like DU it can come across as grating.

So I definitely understand why they do it, and I believe you when you say it’s good content, it’s just unfortunate that the attention-grabbing titles don’t translate well to our format.

everything, of which there is far too much in this world.

The main characteristics of my personal neuodiversity involve receiving light, sound, language, etc., as far more intense than is typical for most people. So, Youtube thumbnails with distorted images and language--screeching shoutlines & exaggerated facial expressions--are wildly offensive to me.

And there are almost certainly sources on Youtube for all of the newsworthy events that don't use those obnoxious shoutlines and possibly present the info in more direct ways or simply in ways more appealing to any particular person.

I just wanted to explain that good content is often to be found under those annoyingly hyperbolic thumbnails that unfortunately are helpful in getting more YouTube viewers, often young, energetic, politically engaged, anti-MAGA folks to watch that anti-Liar-in-Chief content.

I did just check out a few of those vids and found that there is often a subtitle or more factual description in the show notes below them, so maybe those could be added to the postings on DU?

...won't the posters simply litter other forums with them? At least they are consolidated into one primary area now.

Last edited Mon Aug 11, 2025, 11:50 AM - Edit history (1)

I’m suggesting that DUers use the Trash tool that we provide to prevent certain forums from being displayed on the main pages. That’s the best thing for people to do if they don’t like seeing the contents of certain forums.

Edited for clarity: Let me explain how to do this in case you or anyone else are unaware -- just go into the forum you don't want to see any more, and click the "Trash forum" button at the top of the page. You'll be taken to a page with two options, either:

I'm also turned off by the over the top headlines which usually don't deliver anything close to what they promise. However, I keep in mind that the people who are producing the content do need to earn a living because they need to eat and pay their bills.
Thank you for showing me how to trash and/or un-trash a forum. I wasn't aware that we could do that. I really appreciate your work on creating and maintaining this site. DU feels like extended family to me.
I really like the Liberal YouTubers forum, because I would rather search through the posts here, rather than on YouTube where I have to watch endless annoying ads to get the same content. And, if the screaming header seems over the top, I will often choose to read the comments to get an idea of the content and decide if I want to try watching or not. If I feel that what has been posted is useless clickbait, then I just turn it off and keep scrolling.
I live on a fixed income, so paying for a subscription to YouTube is an expense that I prefer to avoid.
Thank you, EarlG and Elad for all the work you do to provide this wonderful site for us. I know that my membership is coming due this month. You can count on me to renew it.
Hugs to all.

unfortunately it’s not possible at the moment due to the way the home page is constructed. It would cause too much server stress to update the home page contents on the fly for each individual user.

IN WILD!!! LATHERED UP!!! NORM-SHATTERING RANT!!!!!!!

Just sayin'

A poster was just celebrated here who posts these videos nonstop on here. Does she get paid for it??? I mean why else would you post this stuff day in and out? It does not help our cause.

I tried to find one episode, where they were showcasing an “outlier poll” showing Kamala up by 5 points in Florida before the election.
Another poster here ask me to send a link for it, so I ended up finding the episode, but that part was conveniently edited out.

There was a lot of hype in the last election cycle about Kamala possibly winning in a landslide, and they were a big part of it. I just think it’s wrong that a perceived allie would falsely mislead their own.

So, they get a base following. Then over time, they "change". I think it's about clicks and $$$$$.

I see things like that on FB. You might follow something for some reason, then over time, they change because $$$$.

I think YouTube also has a few channels like that. You might watch it because of some hobby and then over time it delves into something else....

So if they are doing clickbait, they really aren't an ally.

I’m already so disappointed, I don’t need more.

That I could read in probably a minute and receive nothing of value.

I don’t click on any of them.

Just gotta find it.

I have seen some do it.

I much prefer to read about an issue… that’s why I’m here at DU and not on YouTube getting my news and opinion.

For the most part I find the sensational click bait stories relatively easy to spot and don't waste my time with them. As you, I find it annoying when I do click on an informative video the presenter asks the viewer to like and subscribe.

And I have stopped clicking on a lot of stuff. The screaming, puffed up headline annoys me no end and I tend to ignore sites that use those type of blurbs.

I do find the headlines overly bombastic, however.

...when has he ever had it?

So I'm not going to watch anything like that until Ronald McDonald and Coca-Cola finally send the Orange Ass clown six feet under. Not to mention compilation videos of crying MAGA afterwards.

Every breathless headline is dramatic and self-serving. I've tried reading some of those site's posts and it's the same thing, subscribe, subscribe, subscribe.

I don't get why they're so popular.

...or they have an actual talk radio program in which they take calls.

I've totally stopped clicking on posts with clearly sensationalist headlines.

The headline writing is for the birds, and that's putting it nicely.

That Meidas site/podcast is one of the worst offenders.

The magapubs are not destroyed - until they are destroyed.

And this Admin? They aren't afraid of anything except the Epstein Files.

I also call them out in the comments.

This click baity crap is akin to a certain political party spamming for contributions. (an article on here earlier in the week tells who is the main culprit in that spamming scheme). It takes away credibility, wastes peoples time, and distracts our attention from the truly horrible policies and human rights violations we are seeing everyday.

I don't know how many times I've seen 'This will end Trump' only to find out the content of the post has nothing to do with the demise of the Trump dictatorship. We do not need to be conned into accessing a fact based web site. Just give us factual info.

These shock headlines turn me off. I do sometimes watch the video depending on the presenter and the actual content.

BUT. I have no idea what young people actually find interesting, or what attracts their attention. The future is not me, the future is young people. And Meidas and several other presenters are doing an "EXCELLENT" job of getting views from young people. I support them doing whatever is necessary to educate and energize the coming generations.

Complete turnoff and I refuse to click, read, or view those articles/videos.

the right bait comes along...

A lot of folks here are genuinely trying to keep up with fast-moving news that impacts our lives directly. If there is something in the clickbait vid relevant to us, please take one for the team, watch it yourself, and let us know if there is anything we really need to know.

is often three day old gossip.

Many of the vids are Carnival Barking and, in response to that, I now ignore ALL of the vids.

multiple times a day. I avoid clicking on ones that tend to lean towards hyperbole like Legal AF.
I'm not picking on them, just remembering the author's penchant for exaggerated content in those videos.