Why it matters: The investment is part of YouTube's $25 million commitment to news efforts, which is part of the $300 million Google News Initiative that was announced in 2018.
- As one of YouTube's most successful publishers with 4.6 million for its main account and millions of followers across its affiliated channels, TYT is a logical fit for this type of investment.
The new class features a two-track video series, with each containing 8 videos. Users will take short quizzes along the way, and must pass a final exam after completing each track to earn a TYT Academy certificate.
- First track: Journalism tactics and responsibilities.
- Second track: Best practices for online video production across many online platforms, not just YouTube.
- The goal of the class is to get everyday people engaged in digital media so that they can help report on their local communities.
The big picture: Facebook has also invested in online news courses from publishers. In December, Axios reported that Facebook would be funding an online deepfakes course for newsrooms by Reuters.
Our thought bubble: The videos, which have already been posted online for about two months for this course, appear to be non-partisan, but it's notable that YouTube is investing in a course from TYT, which has a progressive bent.
- Facebook has said that it will include partisan publishers like Breitbart in its news tab, but says it won't necessarily pay Breitbart. The company hasn't released a list of all of the publishers who are being paid.
Comment: Given TYT's clear leftist bias, in a sane world, they would hardly be a logical choice for creating the syllabus for an online journalism school. But since Google's got an agenda to push, TYT and Cenk Uygur in particular, are indeed a perfect fit.