Profession YouTuber
YouTube abounds in the good, the bad and the ugly. The choice is ours to make…
By Dr R Neerunjun Gopee
A few years ago (before the Covid pandemic) I was at a birthday party and talking to a student who was in Form 2 or 3. She was quite articulate and fluent in English, and I happened to ask her whether she had given some thought about what she would like to do as a career. ‘I am going to be a YouTuber’ she replied confidently.
At that time, I had been using YouTube less frequently than I do now, and I hadn’t the foggiest idea what being a YouTuber meant. I therefore didn’t pursue the conversation further with this girl. I haven’t met her again since so I don’t know how far she has gone in her plan, in any case perhaps it’s too early – or perhaps not, who knows! – since she would not have completed her secondary schooling to HSC level yet.
In fact, despite that girl’s forthright assertion, on the spur of the moment I had thought she meant that as a hobby. But afterwards I asked myself whether she was serious, because how can one make a living from being a YouTuber? Practically all of us are simply users of media platforms without bothering about their nitty-gritty, such as how they are set up and what goes into the production of programmes and their diffusion to the public at large, the regulatory aspects, etc. Much like we run our cars without necessarily knowing about its mechanics, which we leave to the… mechanics if something goes wrong or for servicing.
Since then, however, my utilization of various YouTube platforms has expanded somewhat, triggered by the use of this medium during the Covid epidemic to obtain the latest information about the disease presented during focused panel discussions by experts – since it would take time to get such updates in the regular medical journals. In any case changes were taking place so rapidly in the understanding and guidance on the Covid situation that there was no other way to keep apace and put into practice accordingly. From Covid I then graduated to other, non-medical content of interest to me.
It is in line with my increased use of YouTube that my curiosity and interest to probe somewhat deeper into the phenomenon of YouTube and YouTubers has been aroused owing to a controversy that has erupted about a YouTuber in India, whose platform goes by the name BeerBiceps. Apparently during a live session he had asked a female contestant a question on sex matters that was deemed (according to an article in the MEDIA of Feb 12, 2025 by Salila Saffronista) to be ‘inappropriate and vulgar’, ‘lacking any sense of public decency or personal respect’, and moreover the ‘controversial joke was not even original but was plagiarized from a Truth or Drink video by comedians Sammy Walsh and Alan Fang.’
The widespread public outrage that has been swift on social media has raised questions of ethical standards, of professionalism and originality in digital entertainment. These are being widely debated in several news channels in India, with condemnation of such vulgar, putrid humour that glorifies mediocrity and crass. The article under reference underlines the ‘extremely poor standards passing off perverse titillation and normalising incest as entertainment under the garb of freedom of expression and free press. Such unbridled media is bound to have long-term repercussions on Indian society leading to complete anarchy destroying basic morality and family values resulting in increasing violence, sexual abuse and exploitation of children, vulnerable women and the elderly.’ As a matter of fact, it should be clear to everyone that such content can impact society adversely and seriously everywhere.
No wonder therefore that legal action has been initiated against that person, his public apology deemed insufficient considering the gravity of the offence. I must say I was quite surprised to learn about the video session that has been taken to task because I had previously followed quite a few of that YouTuber’s interviews on serious topics that included spirituality. Once such was a discussion with Sri M, a Guru from Kerala whose interventions on the Vedanta are as simple to understand as they are insightful and reveal the Truth and truths of our existence. How did BeerBiceps go off course, some are asking? Were his earlier ones on serious topics a façade to hide his true inclinations?Read More… Become a Subscriber
Mauritius Times ePaper Friday 14 February 2025
An Appeal
Dear Reader
65 years ago Mauritius Times was founded with a resolve to fight for justice and fairness and the advancement of the public good. It has never deviated from this principle no matter how daunting the challenges and how costly the price it has had to pay at different times of our history.
With print journalism struggling to keep afloat due to falling advertising revenues and the wide availability of free sources of information, it is crucially important for the Mauritius Times to survive and prosper. We can only continue doing it with the support of our readers.
The best way you can support our efforts is to take a subscription or by making a recurring donation through a Standing Order to our non-profit Foundation.
Thank you.
