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My media recommendations

If you happen to remember the early days of YouTube, it felt less like a video sharing platform, and more like an art project. The era invoked a rare and delicate form of emotion: genuineness, the essence of the early Internet. People from around the world would post videos about their lives, their cool projects, or whatever avenue of passionate creativity. Forget about Hollywood or formal television, amateur hour is nigh. Vintage cameras, indie films, people simply talking — these defined what made YouTube, YouTube.

Don’t get me wrong. As a platform, I wholeheartedly believe that YouTube has always been on an upward trend. Suffice to say, the objective is no longer the same. Content creators are now focused on retention, advertising, and the algorithm.

If you can’t already tell, I watch a lot of YouTube. I’m definitely taking this way too seriously, but I’ve spent so much time thinking about this. I can’t help myself. This bothered me so much that, a few years ago, I decided to create and maintain a running list of my favorite YouTube videos from my feed. Newer videos would obviously be very different and of higher quality, but the hope is to immortalize the genuine aspects of art and passion from early YouTube.

I’ve adhered to a strict process of deciding whether or not a video should be added to the list. The video must either

  1. Be funny, to the point I physically can’t contain my laughter
  2. Be educational and especially memorable
  3. Tell an interesting story, to where I finish the video without getting distracted
  4. Show an INSANE amount of dedication
  5. Make me emotional

I hope you can appreciate how oddly passionate I am about YouTube videos. Here’s the list, enjoy!

Programming

Math

Talent

Entertainment

Stories

Documentaries