Social impact of YouTube

• One byproduct of this is a rightwing movement in the tech and economic spaces, known as the “parallel economy”.
• The parallel economy is a system of financial services, e-commerce websites and social media targeting communities with rightwing political values, mainly in the US and Europe.
• Advocates for the parallel economy view mainstream media and tech firms as oppressors of conservative voices.
• In response, they are creating and supporting alternative platforms that align with their conservative values.

Deplatformed and demonetised

• The YouTube Partner Programme has been a vital revenue source for content creators, including some conspiracy theorists and extremists.
• This means banning users from the ad revenue sharing programme altogether, although demonetised creators and their content may still be visible to users.
• Self-proclaimed free speech advocates have launched a number of alternative platforms, providing refuge to the deplatformed.
• Rumble, a Canadian company, has become home to numerous “mega influencers” considered controversial or who have been deplatformed by major social media platforms.

Making money in the parallel economy

• PayPal has deplatformed several conservative alt-tech platforms including Gab, known as the free speech Twitter alternative.
• In response, Gab launched its own payment processor, GabPay, to enable financial transactions with and between users.
• American conservative political commentator Jeremy Boreing is a vocal advocate for the parallel economy.
• The parallel economy capitalises on a sense of ideological victimhood that many on the political right are feeling.