After only 40 days, the US Presidential Elections will start. So, Youtube announced some new prompts this week that are created to increase users’ awareness of the voting process and about both candidates. This will maximize the participation rate and will fight rumors and misinformation around the elections.
As you can see in the screenshot above, the prompts will be displayed in searches for terms like “How to register to vote” or “How to vote”, with alerts that lead users to the voting tools in Google office by the “Learn More” button.
Additionally, searches for 2020 federal or presidential Congressional candidates will show a similar panel as well with information about the candidate above the results.
“We’re also providing two additional information panels on voter registration and how to vote, in English and Spanish.”
Also, Youtube is adding new reminders in the application about how to register and the voting way and the place of voting. So, users can know more about how to assist with the community participation and to get involved.
Moreover, Youtube is starting new Originals to outline any information related to the election: YouChoose 2020, and Kid Correspondent.
YouTube -as always- will be the main source of information and news during the election time. Actually, information from Pew Research indicates that some 38% of users on YouTube turn to the platform regularly to get news content.
That makes YouTube a significant influencer when people search for reliable information. Though Youtube can drive users to rabbit halls as well, similar steps are very important to ensure that the audience is receiving accurate information about the process of voting during the viewing activity.
People are spending more time at home due to the global lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic, so this is even more important in 2020. Youtube is witnessing a jump in the viewership with more than 80% every year.
Keep in mind the fact that more regional news and newspaper have shut down after the economic impacts due to the COVID-19 pandemic. So, more people will seek out news from sources like Youtube and Facebook.
Also, the role that is played by all social media platforms in providing relevant information will jump this year. That’s why it is very important that everyone adds links to the reliable source of information like these new prompts created by youtube in users’ queries.
