YouTube offers web-safety workshops to teenagers

Nadir Nahdi of Beni among the video stars teaching young curators how to look after themselves online

Nadir Nahdi of Beni
Nadir Nahdi of Beni will be guiding young people on how to use YouTube
(Image credit: Nadir Nahdi/YouTube)

YouTube will launch a series of workshops to help young content creators "tackle internet safety and issues around fake news", the BBC reports.

The workshops, to be hosted in various locations around the UK, will be targeted towards people between 13 and 18 years old and are being promoted as part of International Citizens day.

YouTube personalities such as Beni's Nadir Nahdi, will provide insight into responding to negative feedback, using online tools and how to check facts before passing them on.

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Anne Smee, chief executive of UK Youth, said: "In this complex world, there is an urgent need to help young people embrace the positive aspects of connectivity but we must also support them to manage the negative effects."

Together with Internet Citizens, YouTube's programme to help young people stay confident online, they are "empowering young people to express themselves, have a voice, listen to others and ultimately gain a sense of belonging by discovering the skills needed to act safely and responsibly online, and make the internet a positive place", she added.

YouTube is cracking down on fake news and accounts stealing content from other users. Fortune reports that creators won't get a share of their video's advertising revenue until their overall viewer count tops 10,000 views.

Meanwhile, YouTube's parent company Google has come under fire for placing ads next to videos containing offensive comment.

Adverts from Johnson and Johnson, car-hiring firm Lyft and US mobile network Verizon appeared on "hate-spewing videos", says Variety, leading to the companies suspending their advertising on Google platforms.

There's no word on when YouTube's youth workshops will take place, but the BBC says the company has "spent the last few weeks" trailing the programme.

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