Progressive YouTubers HATE This One Simple Trick! (Shocking Media Secrets Revealed!) 😱🔥

[QueerDuck]

Is THIS the Shocking Reason Progressive YouTube is Officially DEAD?! (What They Aren't Telling You! 👇

IT'S OVER!! Why I Had to UNFOLLOW MeidasTouch and Really American IMMEDIATELY!! 🛑👀

Every day, I continue to lose what little respect (and hope) that remained for progressive Youtube channels. I’ve reached my breaking point with "progressive" independent YouTube news. I recall that many people, like myself, turned to channels like Really American, MeidasTouch, and their affiliates (and many others) because we were tired of corporate MSM treating politics like a sport and prioritizing ad revenue over substance.

Independent creators promised to be different. Instead, they have become the very thing they used to criticize. They have built their own commercialized outrage farms, enslaved to the dictates of the YouTube algorithm rather than the pursuit of objective truth.

Just scroll through these channels on any given day, the manipulation is glaringly obvious:

--- Algorithmic Churn: Sensationalized, AI-generated thumbnail photos... bright yellow arrows pointing at nothing.

--- "Betteridge" Headlines: Provocative question headlines (the objective answer is always a resounding "no.'')

--- Fluff and Padding: Taking a concise 2-minute press release or court filing and s-t-r-e-t-c-h-i-n-g it into a repetitive, padded 10-minute video purely to qualify for a mid-roll advertisement placement.

This is poison!! When progressive media resorts to exaggeration, hyperbole, and manufactured urgency for the sake of clicks, it fundamentally insults the intelligence of the progressive base. It dumbs-us-down. It makes us look as gullible and stupid and as easily manipulated as the MAGA cult.

By constantly dialing up the outrage baiting to ELEVEN over every minor development, these channels create a boy-who-cried-wolf scenario. It erodes our media literacy, and it mimics the worst bad-faith echo chambers of the right, and ultimately breeds deep cynicism and distrust.

So I choose to vote against this SLOP by scrolling away and not giving them the "click" or the "like" or the subscription. We cannot expect these platforms to get better if we continue to feed the beast and take the bait.

Not that these channels would have noticed or cared, but I've now unsubscribed from them all. This won't change their tactics, but I feel better knowing that I don't support it. (Though YouTube still keeps suggesting that crap to me, and I'll keep clicking "not interested" and "don't recommend channel" in response. In time, I hope, my YT feed will become more interesting and less insulting.)

Are any other DUers feeling this profound burnout with progressive YouTube? How are you curating your media diet to stay informed without losing your mind?

BY THE WAY... BE SURE TO LEAVE ME A LIKE... OR SUBSCRIBE... AND POST YOUR COMMENTS BELOW! AND DON'T FORGET ABOUT MY PATREON PAGE WHERE YOU CAN GET EXCLUSIVE SLOP, RANTING AND NAVEL-GAZING!

[FalloutShelter]

1. K and R

Cannot agree more.
I never want to hear the work BOMBSHELL ever again.

Unless it is this

[FakeNoose]

13. On DU we can trash any post that contains the word "bombshell"

Try it, it works. I've trashed so many similar words and none of that shows up on my feed.
Also I think I've trashed the entire YouTubers forum, but I still see a few of them on my front page.

[Baitball Blogger]

2. So, more Cronkite and less carnival barking?

[paleotn]

23. Preferably....

For those of us who grew up with Walter anyway. A time when journalism was fully professionalized. I fear it's reverted back to what it was in the 19th century. This isn't anything new. Back then, anyone who could get their hands on a press could spew total BS and many did. Their reach was far more limited in most cases than today, but it was a torrent of bullshit nonetheless.

[ornotna]

3. It's always just "one simple trick "

More clickbait complaining about clickbait.

[QueerDuck]

4. Yes... absolutely! You get it!

[Ms. Toad]

5. I haven't clicked on a Midas Touch video in a long time

Not a fan of hyperbole, half-truths, etc.

[DinahMoeHum]

26. I dislike their tabloid approach

I've also steered clear of Meidas Touch recently because of this.

[Bengus81]

30. Like the stage collapsed at the County Fair tag line?

When in reality it was a large piece of I guess metal that fell. Why use the bullshit tag line when the TRUTH was better?

There were girls on that stage practicing for a show. Some of them could have been injured badly or killed--that's the STORY,not some bullshit nonsense that the stage collapsed.

IMO it's gone from what was good to see how much jack you can rake in so keep the "content" coming at a rate of seemingly one per hour. With loads of video from the one that was posted two hours ago.

[TVguyCards]

6. It's not only "progressive" YouTube channels

doing this but basically a whole lot of channels from all walks of life outside of politics.

The reason?

You have less than 2 seconds to get the attention of a viewer. This goes back to the old magazine era when places like grocery stores had multiple aisles filled with magazines (who else remembers that? 😀 ) and that still applies today on sites like YouTube. It's done intentionally. And can you blame them?

It's important that we remember many of these channels are basically a 1 or 2 man show. It's their sole source of income so advertising dollars is how they make their money. Naturally the more viewers you get the more money you make so ya, you want something which immediately engages the viewer so they find it interesting and therefor will click to watch it.

The problem I have is when the thumbnail is misinformation and very misleading. That though is of course a different issue entirely but it does warrant it to be brought up and put into context. They're doing what they need to do in order to make a living so the scenario is "Don't hate the player, hate the game!"

FYI - I definitely don't consider MeidasTouch "Progressive" by any means of the word. I see them as a standard Liberal channel. Now I know you're going to ask me "Well what do you consider progressive to be then?" So I thought I'd share a few channels with you of some of my favorite leftist channels. These include both progressive and the Socialist left.

And maybe some others will fine these channels good and interesting too. YMMV 👍

The Majority Report

Matt Binder who also hosts the Leftist Mafia with several hosts. It's VERY good!

The Humanist Report

Punch Up Pod

The Vanguard

Katie Halper

U.S. Democratic Socialists

Secular Talk

The Rational National

The Serf Times

Hasan

Drop Site News

[dweller]

11. You should post

These channels in a stand alone post to make them accessible as a bookmark

Thanks


✌🏻

[3825-87867]

17. List of these Channels if interested

Simply copy each and insert in your url section and enter.

Also, to save a link, right click the underlined and blue text, select "copy link" then save it to note pad or whatever to access later.
These all should work

https://www.youtube.com/@TheMajorityReport
https://www.youtube.com/@MattBinder
https://www.youtube.com/@TheHumanistReport
https://www.youtube.com/@punchuppod
https://www.youtube.com/@TheVanguardPod
https://www.youtube.com/@TheKatieHalperShow
https://www.youtube.com/@USDemSocialists
https://www.youtube.com/@SecularTalk
https://www.youtube.com/@therationalnational
https://www.youtube.com/@TheSerfTimes
https://www.youtube.com/@HasanAbi
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBMrOkjg3AbvLS5g1MhtlRQ

[Rastapopoulos]

18. I am guilty of clicking on Meidas Touch every night

Whenever I see the headline "Trump Collapses" or "Trump Melts Down" I click, hoping that this is finally "it." It never is of course and I sit thru 15 minutes of built-up, pleas for clicks, and irrelevancies. If I knew how, I would block it from my suggested videos. It would certainly save me a lot of time and frustration. I will give some of these a try, but I usually watch on my Roku TV.

[A_Woman_from_MI]

32. Good list!

I'd add the I've had it podcast https://www.youtube.com/@ivehaditpodcast

[Cirsium]

7. Wow

Last edited Sat Jul 11, 2026, 12:19 PM - Edit history (1)

Well said! We have a bunch of grifters - supposedly "on our side" - who are cashing in on this national tragedy. It is disgusting.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

8. lol I know these terms mean nothing but I would definitely not call Really American or Meidas Touch "progressive"

[Raftergirl]

9. It's entertainment, not news. Of course, YouTube content creators are only concerned with the money

they can make by getting subscribers and the numbers of views. That’s how they make money. Which, of course is their sole goal.

It’s all content creators on YouTube, not just “progressive” content creators.

If you want real news, read a newspaper, or mags like The Atlantic or The New Yorker, etc., which have real serious journalist writing for them.

The amount of posts with crap from YouTube channels just on this site is disturbing, imo.

And stop using the term main stream media, which the right used to tar and feather journalism, and which the left has now happily jumped on that bandwagon, too.

That’s how they got so many people to watch Fox News when they brandished everything else, at the time, Main Street Media. Now Fox is considered that so they turned to the news outlets that are even worse propagandist.


The stupid on both sides is scary and reflects, what I consider, mass gullibility by a majority of the people who have the attention span of gnats.

[QueerDuck]

10. Well said, you! 🫂

🍷🍷

[IrishAfricanAmerican]

12. BOOM!

[PatSeg]

14. Oh absolutely

I never was a huge follower of these channels, but occasionally I watched them. Initially, I disliked how they took a five minute story and stretched it to 20 or more, often interrupting a video clip to throw in their commentary (which I did not need or want).

But now they're employing all these tabloid-like devices that you mentioned. The most annoying for me is that stupid yellow arrow. Reminds me of a Batman comic book.

In the end, I prefer to read information over watching a video that often runs far too long. If I watch YouTube it is maybe for interviews of people I'm interested in or documentaries, rarely politics.

[FakeNoose]

27. Same for me, with few exceptions I'd rather read the story than listen to the dumb video

If I do watch one of those, I usually say "get to the f***ing point" within 2 minutes.

[dlk]

15. If you read Cory Doctorow's book, "Enshittification,"

Your concern is explained, as well as what can be done.

[Shipwack]

16. There are still some some gems in the crap.

Belle of the Ranch

Heather Cox Richardson

et al…

[Amaryllis]

19. I do like Aaron Parnas for straight news. He doesn't do hyperbole.

[TBF]

20. Wow - a lot of determination to knock down progressives -

is that what you were going for here?

I'm not a big you tube user, I get most of my subscriptions via Substack and would rather read Ben Meiselas (Meidas) than watch the shows. But you do understand these folks are supporting, advocating, and voting for dems - correct?

Do you also understand they are not supported by PAC's and probably need that ad revenue to keep their shows going?

My suggestion would be to not split the party as that guarantees a certain loss in the midterms. Let's find ways democrats can welcome progressives (understanding that it goes both ways) and actually work together.

I agree with the poster above - there are good shows like Aaron Parnas that simply reports the news (without yellow arrows if that's your primary concern).

[Cheezoholic]

21. I dont care about likes and I dont read comments on utube because I 've known for years its a game. I watch content

Content is the most important thing. The Tennessee Firecracker Stand headlines irritate the hell out of me but once again its content I'm interested in. The Algorithm needs you to bite all the time to work. I go to their website when it comes to MTN.

[mn9driver]

22. I won't click on video links with scare headlines.

The real world is scary enough. That stuff is insulting clickbait.

[ToxMarz]

24. I don't particularly care for those channels production style and I don't watch them very often for that reason

but their message is generally aligned with progressive messaging which I can't fault them for. They do have a lot of followers/subscribers so someone is getting the message and maybe it's someone who isn't being reached any other way, so I'm fine with that too. I don't fault them because they need to monetize their channels because how else are they going to be able devot the time and resources to produce it. Again, I don't care for the way they do it, so I generally don't watch it. That's just my solution, but I don't feel the need to persuade others not to if they enjoy it. Their message I find generally agreeable

[WestMichRad]

25. My approach is to not subscribe...

… or “like” ANYTHING. I’ll look for the content providers that I want, such as (but not only)
Glenn Kirschner
Harry Litman
Marc Elias / Democracy Docket
Heather Cox Richardson
Institute for Justice

I still get a lot of crap recommendations from YouTube, including lots that look like AI, but I think I get less crap than I might if I were to subscribe to channels or like posts. And if I miss important stuff, meh. I’ll catch up later.

[QueerDuck]

28. Yes... I didn't realize that my early subscription was helping to feed the monster...

...that this has ultimately become. --- You've got the right attitude... you might "miss out" on the one time that a clickbait farm has something worthwhile, but if it's genuinely worthwhile and newsworthy, then someone else will be talking about it too. FOMO is something that clutters up one's feed too.

[Bev54]

29. I have stopped watching Meidas Touch as well

They are definitely prone to hyperbole and long winded stories with a lot of personal opinions. Not what I want, I am looking for facts and perhaps some interpretation. I notice their videos are getting longer and longer. If I do click on it will be for the first 3 minutes. I prefer to watch Aaron Parnas, Bryan Tyler Cohen, Large Man Abroad and the Damage report. Concise reporting on one subject at a time, Oh and Democracy watch as well. Being Canadian, my favourites are House of El (European) she does an AI one as well to keep up on that front. We have a few really good Canadian youtubers that are great as well.

[Sympthsical]

31. Meidas Touch posted 14 videos in the past 24 hours

Just took a gander out of curiosity

Jesus Christ.

I feel sorry for the audience that is rotting their brain like that.

Now, let us all retreat to the bastion of objectivity and good sense . . . BlueSky.

[Keepthesoulalive]

33. I follow some of the black content creators

They tell the other side of the story and thoughtful well researched content. Heather Cox Richardson, Belle of the ranch, Tizzy, Danesh, Danainspired and a few others. Sensational ranting gets clicks and clicks mean money.