Internally this is a living document, and may change as we move forward, but as part of our push for further transparency, we are publishing it in its current form to help our community better-understand how we classify errors and what action we will be taking to rectify them.
Types of errors
Flubs: the host simply misspoke
Incongruencies: information within the video is not in agreement (e.g. host says “$45” while the product page shows “$47”
Bad spec: a table or MOGRT contains incorrect information (e.g. “48MB” instead of “96MB”
Bad data: a graph or visualization contains data (generated by us) that is erroneous, misplaced, or spurious.
Bad info: a statement or representation in the video that is misleading or factually inaccurate
Types of error correction
Proactive (before the video is posted)
Video pickup: the segment is re-shot with both audio and video
Human audio pickup: new audio is recorded for the segment (visuals have coverage)
AI audio pickup: new voiceover is generated. In the best case this uses a voice model that sounds like the host. However, using a robot voice can still work.
Text on screen: the editor overlays clarifying or correcting text
This will not be received by viewers who are not (or cannot) watching the screen
Reactive (after the video is posted)
Video Replace: replacing the video with a new version without re-uploading
This relies on YouTube and takes some time. There are fairly strict guidelines around the use of this tool and strong justification must be provided for all changes. This is preferred to a re-upload, but there is likely a soft-limit on how often we can use this resource.
Re-upload the video: Set the original, erroneous video to Private and upload a new version. This will have algorithmic effects, but must be done if replacement is not an option
Pinned comment: add a comment describing the correction.
This will not be received by viewers who do not check the comments (common, especially for those watching on a Smart TV) and should only be used for low-severity errors.
Assessing & Responding to Errors
If any of the following types of errors are discovered prior to filming (e.g. during script review) , fix them before the shoot.
1. Very Low Severity
- The statement could possibly be misunderstood, but it’s generally true and most people would be fine with how it’s currently presented.
- eg. The host says, “One of DisplayPort’s main advantages over HDMI is its higher bandwidth,” but this is only true when comparing certain generations of the standards. HDMI 2.1, for example, has much higher bandwidth than DP 1.1.
Action: no action
2. Low Severity
- The statement is incorrect, and we should try to clarify it better in the future, but we can leave it for now because it doesn’t meaningfully impact a viewer’s purchase decision or general knowledge.
- eg. The host says, “This monitor features moderate pixel response times and contrast because it uses an IPS panel”, but the panel manufacturer is actually AUO, rather than LG, so it’s not an IPS panel - a term which is trademarked by LG - but rather an IPS-type or IPS-like panel.
Action: Pinned comment
Note: Pinned comment text must be approved by the Community Coordinator before being posted.
3. Medium Severity
- The statement is incorrect, and a minority of the audience could be upset or misled, even if it doesn’t really affect the outcome of the product evaluation for the majority.
- eg. The host says, “This GPU has AMD’s AMF video encoder, which is basically the same as NVIDIA’s NVENC,” but while the stated functionality is the same, NVENC offers better image quality, which could be important to a small minority of buyers.
Action: Video replaced if possible according to YouTube policy, otherwise pinned comment and above fold mention of the issue in the video description
If doing a video replace, a pinned comment should communicate this is coming and note the expected changes. This comment should be un-pinned when the video replace is complete.
Note: Pinned comment text must be approved by the Community Coordinator before being posted.
4. High Severity
- The statement is incorrect, and a significant portion of the audience could be misled or make a poorly-informed purchase decision.
- eg. The host says, “This is a great gaming monitor,” when in fact, the monitor is a 60Hz VA display that, while ‘fine’ for playing games, lacks important gaming-centric features that could be easily had for the same price, making it a poor choice.
Action: Video replaced if possible according to YouTube policy. Otherwise, set unlisted and disable monetization until corrective action can be taken.
If doing a video replace, a pinned comment should communicate this is coming and note the expected changes. This comment should be un-pinned when the video replace is complete.
Note: Pinned comment text must be approved by the Community Coordinator before being posted.
5. Very High Severity
- The statement is VERY incorrect—basically the opposite of correct. There is no charitable interpretation that could make this anything but completely irresponsible.
- ex. The host says, “Most games require only one high-performance core to perform their best,” when that hasn’t been true for over a decade.
MiningMark48 reacted to LinusTech in LTT Video Error Handling Standard Operating Procedure (SOP)
