London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Aug 22, 2025

R.I.P. ‘Dislike,’ YouTube’s best button

R.I.P. ‘Dislike,’ YouTube’s best button

YouTube’s removal of its ‘dislike’ counter is among its most tone-deaf moves ever. But it’s not really surprising, as after countless controversies it’s become clear the platform prioritizes ad revenue and hiding public dissent.

YouTube’s recent decision to remove dislike counts on all its videos seems to be yet another indicator that critique, discussion and feedback are slowly becoming things of the past. All to appease those who require complete conformity, and get triggered into a hysterical frenzy anytime someone disagrees with their opinion, rejects their narrative or points out flaws in their thinking.

The fact that people could freely express their dissent has apparently been bothering YouTube for a while now. They first tested the removal of the count earlier this year, but now they’ve made their final decision. The removal will be done gradually, as dislike counts will start disappearing from under videos. The button will still be there, and there will still be a ‘thumbs up’ count, too, but the public won’t be able to see the amount of dislikes. Creators, on the other hand, will still be allowed to see that information, should they choose to.

But the feature that counted the number of dislikes was easily one of the most useful on YouTube and set it apart from other social media websites that only feature 'Like' and 'Share' counters.

If anything, it actually had the practical function of saving time. Before watching a bunch of ads to get to a video that turned out to be clickbait garbage you could simply check the dislike count for an early warning.

And, with the sheer amount of videos on YouTube, a massive chunk of them being 20-minute-long useless tutorials with deafening music, 'leaked trailers' and 'full movie' uploads linking to shady websites, the dislike count was a godsend.

It also allowed users to gauge the truthfulness of a content creator. If a video had a clickbaity title such as ‘the truth about …’ the amount of dislikes quickly gave away the fact that the author was full of it.

But unwatched videos means unwatched ads, and that’s lost revenue for Google. So now users will actually have to sit through the whole thing or read through the comments (if they're even enabled) before realizing they’ve wasted their time.

YouTube says it removed the count display to supposedly 'protect smaller channels from dislike attacks' but, seriously, who are they kidding? YouTube itself has personally killed more channels with the use of its algorithm and shadowbanning tools than any dislike ratio ever could.

And the only people that seem to be happy about the removal are apparently the people who are incapable of handling ANY sort of debate or conflicting viewpoints. But the question is – if you can't handle the pressure of a thumbs-down icon, why would you even post something for the public to see in the first place? Just to stroke your ego? That would at least explain why these people equate a dislike button to "bullying and harassment."



Despite a few people applauding the move, the overwhelming response to the decision has been extremely negative. Users and creators are pleading with the platform to reverse the decision. But, in light of recent controversies, it’s become quite clear that YouTube doesn’t actually care all that much about its users or creators. The biggest benefactors of this move turn out to be the likes of YouTube itself, which still holds the record for the most disliked video on the website, with its 2018 YouTube Rewind amassing a staggering 19 million dislikes.

Using the cheap excuse of 'protecting the little guy' Youtube has effectively shielded itself and those it rubs shoulders with from one of the last remaining representations of public disapproval.

Because, be it Biden's latest speech or some woke company's latest PSA ad promoting progressive ideology, those videos have proven to be some of the most downvoted on the platform. Removing the dislike count in this context is literally hiding mass dissent.

And unsurprisingly the public's response to Google's decision seems to be overwhelmingly negative, with many citing it as yet another reason they can't wait to get off the platform.



While YouTube still essentially holds a monopoly on video sharing, there are still some rising platforms (DTube, Rumble, Odysee, etc) that could potentially challenge the tech giant in the near future. But, unfortunately, they still have a long way to go, so until then users will just have to read the comments (those that haven't been deleted) to gauge the public’s opinion on a YouTube video.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Bunkers, Billions and Apocalypse: The Secret Compounds of Zuckerberg and the Tech Giants
Ukraine Declares De Facto War on Hungary and Slovakia with Terror Drone Strikes on Their Gas Lifeline
Animated K-pop Musical ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Becomes Netflix’s Most-Watched Original Animated Film
New York Appeals Court Voids Nearly $500 Million Civil Fraud Penalty Against Trump While Upholding Fraud Liability
Elon Musk tweeted, “Europe is dying”
Far-Right Activist Convicted of Incitement Changes Gender and Demands: "Send Me to a Women’s Prison" | The Storm in Germany
Hungary Criticizes Ukraine: "Violating Our Sovereignty"
Will this be the first country to return to negative interest rates?
Child-free hotels spark controversy
North Korea is where this 95-year-old wants to die. South Korea won’t let him go. Is this our ally or a human rights enemy?
Hong Kong Launches Regulatory Regime and Trials for HKD-Backed Stablecoins
China rehearses September 3 Victory Day parade as imagery points to ‘loyal wingman’ FH-97 family presence
Trump Called Viktor Orbán: "Why Are You Using the Veto"
Horror in the Skies: Plane Engine Exploded, Passengers Sent Farewell Messages
MSNBC Rebrands as MS NOW Amid Comcast’s Cable Spin-Off
AI in Policing: Draft One Helps Speed Up Reports but Raises Legal and Ethical Concerns
Shame in Norway: Crown Princess’s Son Accused of Four Rapes
Apple Begins Simultaneous iPhone 17 Production in India and China
A Robot to Give Birth: The Chinese Announcement That Shakes the World
Finnish MP Dies by Suicide in Parliament Building
Outrage in the Tennis World After Jannik Sinner’s Withdrawal Storm
William and Kate Are Moving House – and the New Neighbors Were Evicted
Class Action Lawsuit Against Volkswagen: Steering Wheel Switches Cause Accidents
Taylor Swift on the Way to the Super Bowl? All the Clues Stirring Up Fans
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Apple Expands Social Media Presence in China With RedNote Account Ahead of iPhone 17 Launch
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Cambridge Dictionary Adds 'Skibidi,' 'Delulu,' and 'Tradwife' Amid Surge of Online Slang
Bill Barr Testifies No Evidence Implicated Trump in Epstein Case; DOJ Set to Release Records
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
The CEO Who Replaced 80% of Employees for the AI Revolution: "I Would Do It Again"
Emails Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Character.ai Bets on Future of AI Companionship
China Ramps Up Tax Crackdown on Overseas Investments
Japanese Office Furniture Maker Expands into Bomb Shelter Market
Intel Shares Surge on Possible U.S. Government Investment
Hurricane Erin Threatens U.S. East Coast with Dangerous Surf
EU Blocks Trade Statement Over Digital Rule Dispute
EU Sends Record Aid as Spain Battles Wildfires
JPMorgan Plans New Canary Wharf Tower
Zelenskyy and his allies say they will press Trump on security guarantees
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Escalating Clashes in Serbia as Anti-Government Protests Spread Nationwide
The Drought in Britain and the Strange Request from the Government to Delete Old Emails
Category 5 Hurricane in the Caribbean: 'Catastrophic Storm' with Winds of 255 km/h
"No, Thanks": The Mathematical Genius Who Turned Down 1.5 Billion Dollars from Zuckerberg
The surprising hero, the ugly incident, and the criticism despite victory: "Liverpool’s defense exposed in full"
Digital Humans Move Beyond Sci-Fi: From Virtual DJs to AI Customer Agents
YouTube will start using AI to guess your age. If it’s wrong, you’ll have to prove it
×