The YouTube Black Voices Fund (BVF) was launched in 2020 as the company announced a multi-year commitment dedicated to spotlighting and growing Black creators, by giving them access to resources to help them thrive on YouTube. The original programming highlights important stories and raises impactful voices to not only educate and entertain audiences, but to also inspire meaningful change.
Highlighting Black Stories and Racial Justice on YouTube
About This Project
To better understand the impact of the BVF projects, YouTube commissioned Fluent Research to study and measure the appeal, resonance, and impact of a selected group of BVF programs among viewers of both Black/African American and other race/ethnicities.
Fluent conducted mixed method research that entailed a quantitative study of 207 US adults who were open to learning more about race, racism and racial justice, and a subsample of follow up interviews. Each participant watched 7 hours of programming and answered survey questions after each viewing experience.
Our research determined that as a direct result of watching BVF content, 80% of participants reported they were likely to take action on racial justice issues. The results of the study confirmed the importance of diverse voices in the media and provided evidence that YouTube can engage Black and non-Black viewers with impactful content that highlights the Black experience.