Plumbing New Depths.

I’ve noticed over the past few months that my Watch History on YouTube has occasionally had an advertising video added to it. It happened again tonight. Let’s be clear: I never watch advertising videos on YouTube or anywhere else, which means that I didn’t watch the video that has appeared on my Watch History. I assume this is Google’s doing.

I understand that the adverts on YouTube pay for the service. I accept the fact that there will be adverts because I’m grateful for the free facility. I don’t like it because I find it bordering on sordid that nothing comes free in a free market economy. I dislike the fact that money rules at every turn, but I have to be realistic and accept that however crass, however irritating, however intrusive, however inappropriate, however objectionable the adverts on YouTube are, the service belongs to Google and they have a right to put them up.

But not on my Watch History. My Watch History is the one tiny bit of YouTube that is mine, unequivocally so, because these are things I’ve watched. This is my history, nobody else’s. To add things I haven’t watched is dishonest and a step too far.