Thread by @FordFischer

Within minutes of @YouTube's announcement of a new purge it appears they caught my outlet, which documents activism and extremism, in the crossfire.

I was just notified my entire channel has been demonetized. I am a journalist whose work there is used in dozens of documentaries.

Youtube says "our team of policy specialists carefully looked over the videos you’ve uploaded to your channel News2Share. We found that a significant portion of your channel is not in line with our YouTube Partner Program policies."

As you'll see in the next tweet, that's wrong.

Youtube sent me only two specific videos that they've taken down.

1st is a video of @JasonRCharter and other #Antifa activists confronting a Holocaust denier. While it's true that the Holocaust denier says Holocaust-denier-stuff, this is raw vid documenting him being shut down.

The only other one flagged was raw video of a speech given by Mike Peinovich "Enoch." While unpleasant, this documentation is essential research for history.

Indeed, this exact footage was used in a PBS documentary I associate produced, which MLKIII presented at the premiere.

My similar footage of Richard Spencer, which actually came directly after the Enoch speech, was used in @Deeyah_Khan's Emmy-winning film "White Right: Meeting the Enemy."

Youtube and big tech censorship of journalists provides cover to the people they claim they're opposing.

Several days worth of my footage, including from the same event as the Enoch video, were used in the New York Time's documentary "How an Alt-Right Leader Lied to Climb the Ranks."

nytimes.com/video/us/10000…

I have countless further examples, but I'll wrap by saying that the @DocumentHate series on @PBS with @ACInvestigates / @propublica also relies on my footage, which is accessible via that @Youtube channel.

pbs.org/wgbh/frontline…

This attack on independent journalists who film/track extremism is not without precedent. @sandibachom has been banned from Twitter twice for covering right-wing groups, where Twitter accused her of posting "hate symbols" that she documented.

Facebook is no different. @splcenter once cited me: "Journalist Ford Fischer of News2Share asked Kessler on a video livestream what he thought about people calling him a fascist and Nazi."

The link to that livestream is now dead; Facebook killed it.

splcenter.org/hatewatch/2018…

Youtube claims that "We recognize some of this content has value to researchers and NGOs looking to understand hate in order to combat it, and we are exploring options to make it available to them in the future."

youtube.googleblog.com/2019/06/our-on…

"Some videos could remain up because they discuss topics like pending legislation, aim to condemn or expose hate, or provide analysis of current events."

So far, @YouTube has not lived up to that. My work was used in in "Breaking Hate" with @cpicciolini, from that channel.

My Youtube channel is a hub for research and resources for filmmakers. You can see the dozens and dozens of projects, mainstream and indie and all places in between (like @vice) that use my work.

Deleting history and news that researchers need... is bad

imdb.com/name/nm6336785/

Independent content creators already struggle with being paid for their labor, and demonetization has been a huge detriment - but applied video-by-video. Removing it from the entire channel is a huge blow to someone like me.

@YouTube, do better.

I hate asking for money online, but Patreon will be more critical now that my work on Youtube will be fruitless financially.

I will continue for the service it provides to researchers, documentarians & the public.

But it costs money to film, and to live. patreon.com/fordfischer

I hate to say it, but @minds is the only social media platform I trust to never do this kind of censorship/demonetization.

These situations are what make new platforms popular. Join me there and you can rest assured we'll be safe.

minds.com/register?refer…

Well today has been weird so far.

Jesus F’ing Christ @YouTube.

This all happened because of @scrowder.

YT is claiming they’ll remonetize him if he just removes a tee-shirt he sells with a homophobic slur on it.

@TeamYouTube, can you give me narrow, precise instructions like this?

https://twitter.com/teamyoutube/status/1136356046887313408?s=21

I want to clarify for the record that this is not @gaywonk's fault, and I don't want people harassing him for what happened to me.

Youtube did the purge / censoring / demonetization perhaps in response to him, but these byproducts and errors on their part were @youtube, not him.

Youtube is providing cover for the very people they claim to be combatting when they cast a wide net that removes every kind of content creator.

When Youtube demonetizes @scrowder and I in the same purge, they create a false equivalence.

https://twitter.com/scrowder/status/1136363165476937729

I agree with ... "Lefty-Desiree McLeftyFace Slaps back w Milkshakes" (yes, that's the actual name of the verified account I'm citing here).

@YouTube is at fault here.

People from every side will push them to action. The action was theirs.

https://twitter.com/TinaDesireeBerg/status/1136365883071258624

Ya I probably should have told my partner at @N2Sreports @aletweetsnews that everything is on fire and we're in the center of a political online shitshow.

https://twitter.com/aletweetsnews/status/1136366413793374208

Just to bring the irony of this whole situation into perspective, @voxdotcom is considered the pressure at @YouTube to do this.

Here's an article by Vox that uses my work.

Clearly, they wouldn't have wanted YT to go after someone like me.

Right?

vox.com/2018/8/12/1768…

"Documentary channel News2Share, which primarily published footage of anti-Trump protests, was also demonetized."

buzzfeednews.com/article/ryanha…

“I don’t have any salary whatsoever. I live in DC and travel the country covering activism because I think it’s important — especially in this political moment — to have raw documentation of everything that goes on” said Ford Fischer. via @LibertarianBlue

breitbart.com/tech/2019/06/0…

I just want to put this here to note that I'm still waiting to hear from @TeamYouTube, who did promise to "pass this along for you."

They have my email.

I want to talk and solve this.

https://twitter.com/TeamYouTube/status/1136377601679867910

"What is rare about News2Share is that they do not push an agenda, which had lead to their recordings being used in multiple documentaries and movies that have won awards" writes @USPoliceProblem.

americaspoliceproblem.com/2019/06/05/you…

I just want to point out that while @YouTube figures out how to fix the giant mess it made by demonetizing my channel, @Twitter @TwitterDC would come out a hero if they made me @verified.

#VerifyFord

bottom line: my @YouTube is about current events for the purpose of understanding them being able to provide critical analysis.

That’s what the channel causes. Documentaries and newscasters use it as such every week.

Demonetization is shutting down analysis of current events.

I can’t emphasize enough that nobody with knowledge of this @YouTube situation thinks this was rolled out well.

@RiotDoge, an anti fascist who tracks far right stuff, says only one of the 20 channels they track got affected.

This was totally misguided.

https://twitter.com/riotdoge/status/1136373359762186241?s=21

I want to point out that without any comment on the issue between @gaywonk and @scrowder that seems to be the backdrop for this whole issue, both seem to agree that I was a bystander caught in the crossfire.

@YouTube goofed no matter who you are.

Indeed, the ban has already ensnared one undeserving account: Ford Fischer, an independent journalist and co-founder of News2Share. Fischer covers fringe political events, but he is not himself engaged in the kind of behavior YouTube has declared verboten. reason.com/2019/06/05/ste…

Well I got mentioned in @FortuneMagazine. That’s neat, but ironically, it’s because of me losing my livelihood.

I film activism. Documentaries, news outlets, non-profits, everyone uses my work.

Covering/researching extremism does not an extremist make.

fortune.com/2019/06/05/you…

Today, @YouTube pulled the rug out from my income, my entire livelihood.

Follows are awesome. People tweeting to YouTube is cool.

But I need income to support my work after people forget about this. Please support me on Patreon: Patreon.com/fordfischer

https://twitter.com/fordfischer/status/1136334778670518273?s=21

Thanks @kathygriffin. I do appreciate knowing people in high places of all stripes are looking at this issue.

It touches everyone. This isn’t about the political right.

They should own the issue of anti-censorship.

Someone on 4Chan is claiming @gaywonk threatened me into saying I don’t consider what Youtube did to be his fault.

Let me get out in front of this to say: This is the dumbest thing I’ve ever read. It is obviously false.

Youtube did this. That’s all.

On a day that’s been really hard both on principle and for the loss of my literal livelihood, I’m so grateful to everyone who joined my Patreon.

If you like my raw video work, consider joining.

Either way, continue telling @YouTube they need to fix this

patreon.com/FordFischer

“Ford Fischer, a journalist and editor of News2Share, was also hit for documenting activism and extremism... The platform demonetized the rest of his channel and all future videos.”

-@stillgray at @humanevents

#voxapocalypse #voxpocalypse

humanevents.com/2019/06/05/adp…

While today has mostly only gone from bad to worse, I’m happy to see @mrallsophistory - a literal history teacher caught in this mess - had his account restored.

YouTube considered him to be platforming Nazis for having literal WWII-era news footage.

https://twitter.com/mrallsophistory/status/1136438460603142145?s=21

Alright guys.

Today has been crazy. I have 6 interviews tomorrow already lined up from media asking for them.

I’m going into “do not disturb” mode on my phone.

Media inquiries: [e-mail]

My lovely Twitter friends: Goodnight.

Email from Youtube this morning: "Hi News2Share, As 2019 marches on, we want to make things easier for you so you can do more of what you love."

A big thank you to the Committee to Protect Journalists @pressfreedom for having the courage to stand up for independent journalists like myself.

Fire up those translator apps, my English-speaking friends.

Great article by @FilterNyheter, an independent Norwegian news site covering - amongst other things - political extremism and digital media.

filternyheter.no/youtube-slar-n…

"One prominent dolphin caught in Youtube's tuna net is Ford Fischer, editor in chief of News2share, whose work is widely used by governments, prosecutors, documentarians, and mainstream news stories."
boingboing.net/2019/06/06/dol…

Thank you @politico for including me in your morning tech segment.
politico.com/newsletters/mo…

Thanks as well to @FoxNews for mentioning how I was caught in the crossfire of the Youtube #VoxAdpocalypse

foxnews.com/tech/youtube-s…

"It also started pulling down videos from Ford Fischer, an objective news journalist who covers white supremacists" says @TianaTheFirst at @dcexaminer.

washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/censor…

Thanks @dcexaminer @Julio_Rosas11 for writing about this!

"The difference between content that covers extremism for the sake of analyzing and studying it and extremist content should be obvious, but YouTube pretends not to see the difference," [I] said.

washingtonexaminer.com/news/journalis…

"The Intercept's Glenn Greenwald cited Fischer's case as a prime example of why actions like YouTube's purge are always destined to hurt those who don't deserve it."

Thank you @ggreenwald for standing up for independent journalists.

commondreams.org/news/2019/06/0…

“[My videos] are entirely for the sake of history and news purposes, stated Fischer, “They’ve been used in a couple of dozen documentaries. This is not meant as propaganda for any given side, this is for history and news’ sake.”

breitbart.com/tech/2019/06/0…

YouTube's decision "pulled the rug out from my income, my entire livelihood," Fischer wrote...

"While unpleasant, this documentation is essential research for history."

Thanks for writing this @jbrodkin / @ArsTechnica

arstechnica.com/information-te…

Maybe... just maybe... and hear me out on this guys... YouTube messed up and made all the problems worse.

https://twitter.com/broderick/status/1136627453710000129?s=21

"The work is meant as raw footage, so people can critique and analyze the tactics and things being said," Fischer said. "...yesterday was a huge swing wiping out the remaining element of my Youtube income."

Thanks @IAmAsarch at @Newsweek for your report.

newsweek.com/vox-adpocalyps…

Thank you @benshapiro for mentioning me on your show today.

"One guy's name is Ford Fischer. He's an independent journalist and co-founder of News2Share.com," reports Ben. "He is not engaged in white supremacy. He reports on it."

Youtube should know the difference.

"This includes Ford Fischer, a video journalist and editor-in-chief of the independent news outlet News2Share whose footage has been featured in Oscar- & Emmy award winning films about racial justice, the KKK and the alt-right," reports @lgbtqnation.

lgbtqnation.com/2019/06/youtub…

Dear @TeamYouTube

Tomorrow night I’m covering the “Dyke March” in Washington DC.

If someone says something vulgar or demeaning to the LGBT activists, I would include that in my video.

Would I be penalized for exposing such behavior on film?

Do you want me to sanitize/ignore?

“@YouTube has struggled... appearing to target some educators and reporters by mistake,” reports @LukeBarnes_92 @thinkprogress. “Ford [Fischer’s]... channel had been demonetized as a result of the new rules.”

thinkprogress.org/conservatives-…

“Ford Fischer, a documentary filmmaker, said he was also affected.

“Within minutes of @YouTube‘s announcement of a new purge it appears they caught my outlet, which documents activism and extremism, in the crossfire,” Fischer wrote Wednesday“ @DailyCaller
dailycaller.com/2019/06/06/you…

Apparently @RubinReport and @scrowder have spoken about me a bit tonight. I missed it apparently.

Will check out and respond whenever their livestream ends.

"My work is raw coverage of activism and extremism that's necessary for critical analysis of big issues, documentaries and news," Fischer, who had over 27,000 followers on YouTube on Thursday night, told ABC News.

@ABC / @lalasoo on my @TeamYouTube issue.
abcnews.go.com/Business/journ…

Youtube goofed.
Youtube goofed.
Youtube goofed.

This is so bad I’m using this dumb Tweet format.

Youtube goofed.
Youtube goofed.
Youtube goofed.

@TeamYouTube fix this for @sandibachom and I and everyone.

Youtube goofed.
Youtube goofed.
Youtube goofed.

https://twitter.com/sandibachom/status/1136814541759811584?s=21

"'...my work is about building things for the sake of historical understanding and to provide critical analysis of the very content they were censoring,' Fischer told Forbes."

Thank you @rachsandl at @Forbes for talking to me today about @TeamYouTube.

forbes.com/sites/rachelsa…

“Meanwhile, middle-of-the-road reporters like Fischer are caught in the crossfire with their income put on hold because YouTube can’t make up its mind about policing its platform.”

ijr.com/youtube-faces-…

I’m getting a lot of new followers recently largely because of the @YouTube debacle, and I want to clarify my work:

I’m not “neutral” or “centrist.” My work is objective and raw.

When you film two (or more!) sides of a conflict, raw just means I’m presenting them as they are.

I film without commentary other than tactical/contextual observations. My own opinion is irrelevant in my work.

“Neutrality” or “centrist” is proclaiming the equality of both sides. I make no such - or any - proclamation.

Not all perspectives are equal. I let the viewer decide.

So tonight, I’m covering the “Dyke March” for example. It’s a pro-LGBT event.

Someone may heckle or shout at them.

Me filming them and also filming anyone who opposes them isn’t a claim that they’re the same thing. That’s ridiculous.

It’s just raw video news.

Tomorrow, I’m covering a “rally against illegal immigration” at the White House. The founder of the Oathkeepers will be present.

I’m sure some people will be out to oppose them.

I’ll film and speak to both sides.

Covering them both in a raw style doesn’t mean they’re the same.

“Independent journalist Ford Fischer, for example, said YouTube just demonetized his entire YouTube channel documenting different kinds of activism and extremism because of Wednesday’s policy update.”

-@InsideSourcesDC / @katepatrick_

insidesources.com/youtube-conten…

Back to your regularly scheduled bashing of @YouTube until they fix this whole mess.

YouTube’s censorship is arbitrary to the point of seemingly nearly random. It hurts everyone

@rightwingwatch covers a guy say something on YT. Theirs deleted, his stays

https://twitter.com/rightwingwatch/status/1137045708228517888?s=21