Tens of thousands of YouTube users are criticizing its decision to hide how many times a video has been disliked, according to the German news agency.
The Google-owned platform announced, a few days ago, it will no longer show how many "dislike" ratings a video has received in an effort to create an "inclusive and respectful environment."
However, users will still be able to click on the dislike button for any video, YouTube said. It will no longer impact other users' discretion to watch a video, as the dislike counter will be visible only to the creators of the video.
Since the announcement on Wednesday, tens of thousands of users of the web's largest video platform are criticizing the move. "This isn't about protecting creators. This is about protecting corporations and media companies," one user commented on a YouTube video announcing the changes. The comment received 14,000 likes and an unknown number of dislikes.
YouTube's video announcing plans to hide dislike counts received 33,000 thumbs down (dislikes), four times more than the number of thumbs up (likes).
While YouTube's public comments section remains intact, removing a quick mean to see the public verdict on a video will make it more difficult to spot bad or disputed content, users have argued. Following the announcement, YouTube dismissed user complaints that the move amounts to censorship and protecting big brands and advertisers.
