As the news of George Floyd’s death while being detained by police emerged, viewership of videos with his name in the title or description increased.
Views of George Floyd videos skyrocket following his death
Indexed daily views of videos with “George Floyd” in the title or description
Source: Global YouTube views, 5/1/2020- 6/8/2020
The conversation quickly turned to discussions related to policing of Black lives in America, and views of videos related to Black Lives Matter increased concurrently.
Black Lives Matter viewership in the wake of George Floyd’s death
Indexed daily views of videos related to Black Lives Matter
Source: Global YouTube views, 5/1/2020 - 6/15/2020
Viewership of Black Lives Matter videos was not restricted to just the United States.
Black Lives Matter viewership went global
Country-level views of videos related to Black Lives Matter
Source: Global YouTube views, 5/26/2020- 6/14/2020
Black creators began to speak out, sharing their experiences with race in “Being Black In” videos.
Creators used “Being Black In” videos to speak out on racial injustice
Indexed daily uploads of videos with “Being Black In” in the title
Source: Global YouTube views, 1/1/2020- 6/14/2020
Non-Black allyship emerged as a topic of discussion as creators shared their perspectives and instructions on how to support the struggle for racial equality.
Creators began to discuss allyship as protests erupted
Indexed weekly uploads of videos with “how to be an ally” or “dear white people” in the title
Source: Global YouTube views, 1/1/2020- 6/10/2020
YouTube’s Music Charts reflected the call to action, with classic protest anthems like Childish Gambino’s “This Is America” and new releases like Meek Mill’s “Otherside of America” skyrocketing in views.
“This Is America” emerges as protest anthem
Daily views of Childish Gambino - “This is America” official music video
Source: Global YouTube views, 1/1/2020- 6/10/2020
Political developments led to historic highs for views of videos related to Juneteenth in the run up to the holiday.
Viewership of Juneteenth videos hit record high in 2020
Annual views of videos related to Juneteenth through June 12, 2020
Source: Global YouTube views, 4/1/2007- 6/12/2020
- Researched by Earnest Pettie, Maddy Buxton, and Kevin Meenan