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plague journaling
May. 2nd, 2020 07:01 pmI have had an incredibly productive and successful day (sarcasm warning): I organized my podcasts on the app I no longer use, because I'm annoyed by the glitches introduced in the latest update to the app I do use. That's--that sure is a thing I did with my life today.
I've noticed something, and it seems suspiciously plague-aligned. Youtube ad break timing is getting ironic. I've been watching clips from various comedy shows, ranging from a few minutes to hour+ compilations. Different channels, different topics. And in the last month or so, I've noticed two things.
The ad breaks are getting way more frequent, which is annoying. Youtube has, I can only assume, way more consistent viewing happening now than usual--surely they don't need to VASTLY increase the frequency of advertising, do they? But more than that, the timing of the ads has taken on a sinister skill at interrupting jokes.
I'm going to start tracking how often ad breaks preempt the punchline of a joke, and I am not going to like the answers I get. If this is algorithmically done, I am deeply unsettled by the sudden uptick in the system's ability to interpret jokes and choose the most annoying moment to interrupt. If this is something humans are doing--gods, I hope it's not, that's worse--I'm curious what the business strategy is there. Do people keep watching longer if you make them wait through yet another ad for a Chirp Wheel before hearing the punchline of a joke? Is the humor increased if you cut comedians off mid-sentence to make room for that smarmy fucker to shill conservative conspiracy rags* to me?
I have so many questions.
*I shan't name it, because gods only know what algorithm will pick up on it and decide I need to see something even worse. But apparently, for the sin of watching news and political commentary, I shall be forced to have a print newspaper flapped at me by a Young Republican-looking ass motherfucker, telling me how reporters for this rag have been doing SERIOUS INVESTIGATING OF THE DEEP STATE CONSPIRACY. *brandishes full-page spread that's mostly a photoshopped collage of Obama administration officials with the color saturation turned way down* SIRIUSBIZNIZZZZZ!!1!
I've noticed something, and it seems suspiciously plague-aligned. Youtube ad break timing is getting ironic. I've been watching clips from various comedy shows, ranging from a few minutes to hour+ compilations. Different channels, different topics. And in the last month or so, I've noticed two things.
The ad breaks are getting way more frequent, which is annoying. Youtube has, I can only assume, way more consistent viewing happening now than usual--surely they don't need to VASTLY increase the frequency of advertising, do they? But more than that, the timing of the ads has taken on a sinister skill at interrupting jokes.
I'm going to start tracking how often ad breaks preempt the punchline of a joke, and I am not going to like the answers I get. If this is algorithmically done, I am deeply unsettled by the sudden uptick in the system's ability to interpret jokes and choose the most annoying moment to interrupt. If this is something humans are doing--gods, I hope it's not, that's worse--I'm curious what the business strategy is there. Do people keep watching longer if you make them wait through yet another ad for a Chirp Wheel before hearing the punchline of a joke? Is the humor increased if you cut comedians off mid-sentence to make room for that smarmy fucker to shill conservative conspiracy rags* to me?
I have so many questions.
*I shan't name it, because gods only know what algorithm will pick up on it and decide I need to see something even worse. But apparently, for the sin of watching news and political commentary, I shall be forced to have a print newspaper flapped at me by a Young Republican-looking ass motherfucker, telling me how reporters for this rag have been doing SERIOUS INVESTIGATING OF THE DEEP STATE CONSPIRACY. *brandishes full-page spread that's mostly a photoshopped collage of Obama administration officials with the color saturation turned way down* SIRIUSBIZNIZZZZZ!!1!
