Senators hit YouTube for snubbing hearing

MANILA, Philippines — Senators hit global online video sharing and social media platform YouTube for not participating in a Senate hearing on proposed measures relating to movie releases online and via live streaming.

Sen. Grace Poe described as unacceptable that YouTube does not have a representative in the Philippines who can be contacted in case there is a problem or complaint against them.

Poe clarified that she doesn’t want to regulate the contents of YouTube as she herself watches videos through the platform. However, she believes it would be better for the platform to have someone that the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB) could talk to if there were concerns about its contents.

“Suppose there is a material on YouTube that is unacceptable for being pornographic, how can we stop it? Does YouTube have direct communication in the Philippines or not?” asked Poe during a public hearing of the Senate committee on public information and mass media chaired by Sen. Robinhood Padilla.

But Edward Mark Meily, president of the Directors’ Guild of the Philippines, explained that social media and online platforms such as YouTube and Facebook have a system where pornographic materials can be flagged immediately and deleted automatically.

Meily further said the MTRCB might find it difficult to monitor all the videos – an average of 500 hours per minute – being uploaded on YouTube. However, parents can play a big role in practicing parental controls to manage what their children watch.

Yesterday’s public hearing tackled proposed bills on enhancing the capabilities and reforming the mandate and organizational structure of the MTRCB, and video and online games and the outdoor media regulation act.

MTRCB Chairperson Lala Sotto-Antonio told the panel that at present, the board has no access to YouTube but vowed to assert it if necessary.

Padilla said they contacted the people from YouTube prior to the hearing, and that he might issue a subpoena to require the platform to send a representative as Poe insisted that YouTube really needs to have a representative in the country to help address concerns such as Filipino movies being pirated and aired on the platform, thus hurting the Filipino film industry.