At the close of Pride Month, YouTube has released a statement specifically addressed to its LGBTQ+ users which touch on a number of controversies that have wracked the platform this month. The four part message was shared on the streaming service's official account and included an acknowledgment that they had "let the LGBTQ community down", as well as a commitment to make YouTube a more inclusive space.
The statement began, "It’s the last day of Pride Month and we wanted to reach out to the LGBTQ community. We’re proud of the incredible LGBTQ voices on our platform and the important role you play in the lives of young people. 1/4
But we’ve also had issues where we let the LGBTQ community down–inappropriate ads and concerns about how we’re enforcing our monetization policy. We're sorry and we want to do better. 2/4"
At the beginning of the month, many creators began noticing that YouTube anti-LGBT ads were running against their content - especially those who identified as and spoke openly about LGBTQ+ issues. These ads included but were not restricted to a video by Alliance Defending Freedom, who are officially classed as an extremist group with an anti-LGBT agenda by Southern Poverty Law Center, as well as an ad titled CAN YOU BE GAY AND A CHRISTIAN? by AskDrBrown Ministries which explicitly called homosexuality "a sin".
When I spoke to YouTube, they directed me to a difficult to navigate part of their system which would allow creators to block certain ads from running on their channels. However, the system is inherently flawed because creators can only block a specific outbound link that the advert points to - not the creator and brand themselves.

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