Yesterday was unofficially declared "YouTube Porn Day" in an angry protest against the popular video website for suspending Lukeywes1234's account.
According to Salon.com, this young boy, who's probably not much older than 10 years, became famous "overnight"; gaining passionate followers who were interested in listening to what he had to say. One tribute video shows a screen-shot of Lukeywes1234 holding a plastic sword, while wearing tin foil on his head, with a caption, "It's not a sword!!! It's a ghost detector". The article mentioned Star Wars, Super Mario Bros., ghosts, and wearing tin foil on his head were common topics in the Lukeywes1234 realm.
One user comments, "The kid freaks out. He makes a video where he's beside himself in excitement".
YouTube was not the only place that Lukeywes1234 gained popularity as he also surfaced on 4chan, an image posting board where people can upload and discuss material anonymously. With 15 000 subscribers, he soon became an Internet phenomenon.
However, the success of Lukeywes1234 almost seemed too good to be true when YouTube suspended his account because he was... popular? Because he was expressing himself and his opinion for the rest of the world to witness? Because he became an icon for adamant media buzz junkies? Perhaps YouTube was jealous that 4chan is responsible for the majority of his popularity, but the articles articles do not give specific details about the justification behind YouTube's actions.
Lukeywes1234 followers of the world united yesterday to instigate an attack on YouTube and it was conceived by none other than members on 4chan. This poster was uploaded onto 4chan in an effort to inform everyone around the world to participate in the event.
I think it is sheer brilliance. Although I don't really agree with luring people with children's clips and then substituting it for porn, their plan definitely worked as they've already gained popularity with the media.
Yes children should not be exposed to adult material at a young age because they do not understand the implications surrounding it, but there is no need to censor and regulate the Internet. Children, and anyone else for that matter, will always encounter inappropriate material inside and outside of the Internet, but it's the role of the parents to educate them about what's right and wrong. To the parents who caught their child watching this porn, be thankful that your kid wasn't intentionally searching for it on Google - where an unlimited variety of material awaits them - and just happened to stumble upon it. That be a good moment to perhaps explain to your child what they saw and why most people are against watching it.
After yesterday's revolt, maybe YouTube will think twice about ruining a young boy's innocent attempt to entertain the world.
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