YouTube's New Policy Targets Medical Misinformation, Cracks Down on Harmful Cancer Treatment Videos

YouTube has taken a decisive step to combat the spread of medical misinformation across its platform. Acknowledging its role as a prominent source of information, especially concerning medical treatments, the video streaming giant is addressing the problem of misleading content. The company's latest initiative entails removing videos promoting harmful or ineffective cancer treatments and cures.

YouTube, a subsidiary of Google, outlined its strategy to tackle medical misinformation. This entails revamping and consolidating its existing guidelines into three distinct categories: Prevention, Treatment, and Denial.

These categories will focus on specific health conditions, treatments, and substances where content contradicts established guidance from local health authorities or the World Health Organisation (WHO). Dr. Garth Graham, director and global head of Healthcare and Public Health Partnerships, and Matt Halprin, VP and global head of Trust and Safety, YouTube co-authored the official blog post.

Videos that breach these policies and endanger viewers by promoting hazardous content, such as '˜harmful or ineffective' cancer treatments and '˜cures', will be removed from the platform.

Further, videos that discourage users from seeking professional medical attention will also be deleted. YouTube is keen to address the dissemination of unverified health practices. It has pledged to delete content that conflicts with recognised health authorities, particularly regarding cancer, COVID-19, vaccines, and reproductive health.

To tackle this challenge, YouTube has laid out a comprehensive three-pronged approach:

The new policy will extend to videos associated with a high public health risk, those contradicting established health guidance globally, or those that exhibit susceptibility to misinformation.

Educational, scientific, and documentary content will primarily be exempt from this policy if it does not actively discourage professional medical care-seeking.

The platform's commitment to providing reliable and accurate health information aligns with its broader mission to serve as a responsible source of knowledge for its users.