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I created a site where I collected meaningful YouTube comments—sadyoutube.com. I also tracked down some of the commenters and interviewed them about their stories for a piece for BuzzFeed some years ago: https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/markslutsky/how-the-youtube-comments-section-became-our-cultures-secret

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Wow, this is haunting. Great stuff.

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Thank you! It kind of took over my life for several years.

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I've noticed this too. YouTube comments section were actually in the past the place for the worst of humanity to offer to offer their opinions with hyperbolic aggression. Selections of classical music there would lead to knock-out brawls down below. But lately, the default mode is one of positivity and mutual support. I'm not sure I buy your thesis contrasting it to Twitter, but I do wonder what has changed lately to make it so nice.

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Yeah, some others have made that observation, that it's like something changed at a certain point. No idea what that is (maybe a product/moderation change?), but the vibe is noticeably different now.

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That YouTube commenter is not the first person for whom shoegaze and dreampop made them question gender.

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Certainly not

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