Seems that YouTube isn’t just for surfing for the latest releases from your favorite musical artists or posting your HI-larious home videos anymore. It’s apparently fun AND educational.
A new Pew research study surveyed over 4,500 Americans and found that 51% of users, both regular and occasional, say they rely on YouTube to figure out “how to do things.” That’s a whopping 35 % of all American adults logging on to learn everything from “how to tie a tie” to “how to make slime” to “how to get the galaxy skin in fortnite” to “hot to get boogie down dance.” Seriously. Those are all real searches that pop up on the site’s browser bar.
Of course, 28% of users still say they’re on YouTube “just to pass the time,” and 19% are looking for a guide to a new purchase. Another 19% say they look to YouTube to “help them understand what’s going on in the world,” which isn’t exactly comforting considering the site has a well-documented problem with posted conspiracy theories and misinformation. And then there are the 81% of parents who let their kids regularly watch videos on the site. Nanny YouTube?
Maybe the new study won’t amount to a hill of beans in this crazy YouTube world, but it’s fun to know what that world is coming to.
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