YouTube is making a major change to how it treats strong language in videos, and creators are welcoming the move.
According to Conor Kavanagh, who leads YouTube’s monetization policy experience, videos that include strong profanity, such as the F-word, within the first seven seconds can now earn full ad revenue.
Before this update, videos with early swearing were only allowed to earn limited revenue. That restriction frustrated many creators and sparked debate across the platform.
YouTube has been adjusting its language policy for a while. In November 2022, the company introduced rules that could reduce ad revenue if profanity appeared within the first few seconds of a video. That update caught a lot of criticism. Popular voice actor and YouTuber ProZD, whose real name is SungWon Cho released a video poking fun at the change by waiting 15 seconds before calling it the dumbest thing he had ever heard. Even that video ended up getting demonetized.
In March 2023, YouTube made some changes to soften the impact. Videos that included swearing between the 8 and 15 second mark could once again qualify for ads. This week’s update goes even further by allowing profanity right from the start.
When asked how he felt about the new policy, ProZD simply said it is about time.
YouTube originally introduced the restrictions to match traditional broadcast standards. Advertisers wanted a safe distance between their ads and any strong language. But those expectations are changing. According to Kavanagh, many advertisers now have more control and can choose the level of language they are comfortable with.
Still, there are a few rules that remain. If you include strong or moderate profanity in your video title or thumbnail, your video can still be flagged. Also, if a video uses strong language too frequently,y it may not be eligible for full monetization.
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As Kavanagh explained, creators should choose their words wisely.
