NORTHAMPTON — YouTube restored Northampton Open Media’s archive of government meetings on Friday thanks to help from a Google employee in Springfield who sent their own internal appeal of the channel’s termination.
Last Wednesday, Google notified Northampton Open Media (NOM) that it had pulled the account for allegedly violating the website’s nudity and sexual content policy. The email did not specify which videos breached policy, but NOM Director Al Williams suspected it was related to a few brief instances of unedited “zoom bombing,” or when an anonymous person interjects inappropriate content into a meeting.
NOM appealed the decision. Then on Friday, when word spread about the account’s termination, Max Hunter, a Google employee based in Springfield, took matters into their own hands. They sent an internal appeal of their own, and kept Williams updated about the status of his own appeal. A second Google employee based in Philadelphia also offered to help, Williams said.
“We’re super excited and super grateful,” Williams said. “It is a beautiful demonstration of the power of community. It also feels a little unfair to other people because they may not be lucky enough or privileged enough to have that sort of attention.”
A Google spokesperson said the company had reviewed NOM’s appeal and found it appropriate to reinstate the account, but the video that violated the site’s policies will remain removed.
For the last decade, NOM has recorded, live-streamed and published thousands of Northampton board and committee meetings on its Government Media Archive YouTube channel. City residents can watch meetings from City Council, School Committee and the dozens of other boards and committees that meet throughout the year.
Hunter said they felt inspired to help because they view government transparency as a foundational principal of democracy, and NOM’s documentation of government proceedings upholds this tenant at the local level.
“In a time where tensions around local politics are running high, I think the work of organizations like Northampton Open Media is more important than ever,” Hunter said by email.
YouTube uses a strike system to regulate content on the site. According to Google’s policy, an account that violates one of the website’s regulations receives a strike. The third strike within a 90-day period results in the removal of an account. The spokesperson adds that a severe infringement of a content policy will result in a channel’s termination without warning.
Williams does not know for sure whether the internal appeal was the reason behind Google’s decision, nor did the company elaborate on reason for taking down the channel.
“I think it’s because of the zoom bombs but there was no information on that. It’s very vague,” he said.
The incident spurred conversations about the best way to preserve information with other community access media organizations in the region and nation, Williams said. While the discussion remains ongoing, staff within NOM are pursuing other ways of broadcasting information through Apple or Roku, and considering hosting internal servers or finding new backup methods.
“It’s a really beautiful moment. We feel really cared for and honored,” Williams said. “You can’t do better than that.”