YouTube — the world’s biggest video sharing platform and second most popular search engine — has a unique feature that sets it apart from other social media sites. Just underneath each video are a tiny thumbs-up and thumbs-down symbol: “like” and “dislike.” They serve as a way to express viewers’ reactions to a video, send feedback to the creator and function as a rating of the content. But as of late, the value of these two buttons has disappeared.

On Nov. 10, YouTube released a video that announced an update to the dislike count on their platform. Matt Koval, head creator liaison, explained that groups of viewers were targeting creators and abusing the dislike button on their videos. In order to reduce these attacks, YouTube has decided to keep the ability to dislike but change the public dislike count to private. 

This video, “Update to YouTube’s Dislike Count,” currently has a ratio of 30k likes to 500k dislikes.

The negative reaction towards YouTube’s decision might seem unwarranted at first, but I’ve experienced firsthand why removing the dislike count actually inflicts more harm than good. An increasing number of “clickbait” videos with misleading titles or thumbnails have been popping up in my YouTube homepage and recommendations. My time has been wasted sitting through tutorials with useless information. Before, a quick glance at the like-to-dislike ratio bar would have immediately told me to either stay or click away from the video, but being unable to see it has lowered my enjoyment on YouTube.

A hidden dislike count can also lead to consequences even worse than those minor inconveniences. The spread of videos with misinformation and fake news will worsen, and more people will unknowingly download viruses to their software or become victims to scammers. Yes, comments can be written to warn other viewers of these dangers, but they can just as easily be regulated and removed by the uploader. This new change will only help horrible creators like predators and animal abusers get away with their crimes.

The removal of a dislike function doesn’t make sense even outside the scope of YouTube. Imagine if negative ratings and reviews were hidden from sites such as Amazon or Yelp. You would be much more likely to buy lower quality products and receive bad services. The likes on a video are only valuable in juxtaposition with the dislikes, and without both present, you will be unable to get the full picture of the content.

In all honesty, I am heartbroken to see the website that I grew up with travel down this path. Koval stated in the update video that this change was made because “half of YouTube’s mission is to give everyone a voice,” yet it is clear that the voices of viewers and creators begging for the public dislike count to return are not being heard. Since the 2018 YouTube Rewind (which has become the most disliked video), it’s been painfully obvious to see how out of touch YouTube is with their community. 

I believe that the only thing that could sway YouTube’s decision is the threat of a strong competitor, but it would likely be a long time before another platform rises to that level. Until then, your best bet is to download a browser extension that restores a visible dislike count and hope that YouTube will someday realize the mistake that is leading them closer to their downfall.