YouTube Popularity and Content Trends

The definition of popularity on YouTube varies based on the creator's background, whether from a traditional media company or an independent producer.
The distinction between professional and amateur content creators is increasingly blurred.
Popularity is complex:
- It involves more than just identifying the most-watched videos.
- It does not solely reflect the tastes of the overall YouTube audience.
Categories such as Most Viewed, Most Favorited, Most Responded, and Most Discussed are key indicators of popularity.
Metrics serve as "technologies of re-presentation," shaping viewers' understanding of what content is popular (41).

Content on YouTube can originate from established media practices (traditional media) or be user-created.
There is a noticeable increase in user-generated content among popular videos.
Most widely viewed content often comes from mass media sources rather than user-generated posts.
Common content types include:
- Informational material (e.g., news, political discussions, celebrity gossip).
- Live content (e.g., sports, musical performances).
- Scripted programming (e.g., clips from TV series, dramas, animation).
Users often express their identity through their preferences by favoriting videos, which communicates personal tastes and serves as recommendations to others.

The emergence of participatory culture and digital tools has transformed audience engagement, reducing the reliance on auxiliary media forms.
Redaction in media refers to creating new content by editing existing materials.
Content consumption is an active process, contributing to value creation; the notion of media users as "read-write" participants is significant (48).
User engagement often involves quoting rather than uploading entire programs, which contributes to a meaning-making process.
Most Viewed content tends to reflect prevailing public interests rather than highlight breaking news.
YouTube serves as a platform for political activism while fostering a celebrity culture around political figures.

User-created videos often experiment with video aesthetics and highlight the medium itself.
Example: YouTube Poop utilizes jarring edits and rapid cuts in video manipulation.
Most Discussed and Most Responded content typically includes informal pieces, such as vlogs and user-generated music videos.
Vlogging exemplifies YouTube's emphasis on immediacy and conversational engagement (54).