How YouTubers like mom accused of child abuse make money off popular videos

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With more than 240 million YouTube views, Machelle Hobson stood to make a lot of money off the Fantastic Adventures series, a channel starring seven children living in her home.  

Now, she's been arrested and the popular YouTube channel appeared to be taken down as of Wednesday afternoon. 

Hobson was arrested Friday on suspicion of repeatedly abusing the seven children, whom Maricopa police say Hobson had adopted, if they didn't perform well in the videos. Officers initially identified Hobson by another last name.   

The Department of Child Safety has removed the seven children from her custody.

© Provided by Gannett Co., Inc. Machelle Hobson

In its title, the YouTube channel promised "Fantastic Adventures" and featured children acting out fantastical scenes, like a "super hero" battle posted in February 2018.

Just over 800,000 people subscribe to the channel, and many of the videos have more than 2 million views. One has more than 21 million views. Most are about 10 minutes long, and a new video was updated about once a week over the past year. 

YouTube statistics calculator SocialBlade estimates Hobson's channel made between $8,900 and $142,000 a month, and $106,800 to $1.7 million a year. 

Behind the scenes, however, the children reported being locked in a closet for days without food, water or access to a bathroom, according to police. They told officers they were punished if they forgot lines when they appeared in the YouTube videos, and were sprayed in the face and genitals with pepper spray. 

MORE: YouTube mom, accused of abusing 7 adopted kids, held on $200K bond

YouTube told The Republic that as soon as the organization heard of the arrest, it demonetized the channel. 

 "We work closely with leading child safety organizations and others in our industry to protect young people. When we're made aware of serious allegations of this nature we take action, which may include suspending monetization, or, upon conclusion of an investigation, terminating channels."

But that means it's very likely Hobson made money off the channel before the company flipped the monetization switch. Some popular channels can make millions off their content through ads and subscribers, making the website an alluring enterprise opportunity. 

How do you make money off YouTube? 

YouTube lists a few requirements for users to start making money.

The videos need 4,000 hours watched in the last 12-month period, channels should have more than 1,000 subscribers and YouTubers should follow all partner program policies, according to the organization's support page. 

The program policies include following YouTube's community guidelines, which prohibit "content that endangers the emotional and physical well-being of minors." Those guidelines encourage people to reach out to local law enforcement if they believe a child is in danger.  

Ultimately, YouTube decides in a review process whether a channel makes the cut for monetization. The organization states in its policy that human reviewers are involved in making sure content follows all YouTube guidelines. 

How much do YouTubers make? 

It's unclear exactly how much Hobson made from YouTube. SocialBlade's range is broad, but estimates the channel earned at least six figures a year, if not more than $1 million. 

Profits vary depending on advertisements, according to YouTube. Channel-owners can receive advertising revenue, monthly payments made by subscribers in exchange for membership perks, money from branded merchandise showcased on the channel, money paid by fans to get messages highlighted in chat areas, and subscription fees.  

Some of the most popular YouTubers make millions off their content, according to Forbes. For instance, Jefree Starr is estimated to have earned $18 million in 2018 off his YouTube career. 

Fantastic Adventures' number of subscribers was just a fraction of Starr's 13 million subscribed fans. But the channel's membership, is still significant enough to bring in money. 

Reach the reporter at Lily.Altavena@ArizonaRepublic.com or follow her on Twitter @LilyAlta.

Support local journalism. Subscribe to azcentral.com today. 

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: How YouTubers like mom accused of child abuse make money off popular videos

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YouTube or Twitch? Which is better to make money?

Find out where to make the most money: YouTube or Twitch

Before we dive into the mechanisms that enable content creators to make money through YouTube or Twitch; let's take a look at a few key differences.

1. Platform popularity

Twitch has been a live streaming platform since 2011. YouTube started out with VoD in 2005 and joined the live streaming party in 2013. YouTube is still a giant in terms of active monthly users. Twitch has 140 million compared to YouTube's 1.8 billion monthly active users!

2. Content discoverability

A key factoid to remember about YouTube is that it is owned by Google, the largest search engine in the world. It then follows that, with YouTube's popularity, it is the second largest search engine in the world.

Why is this important? Well, YouTube uses an algorithm to find what you're searching for. This means there are a number of variables used to determine how search results are ordered which means better discoverability.

Twitch is more like a directory where search results are based on video views. This means that search is skewed towards established streamers. If you've just started streaming the chances of being found through Twitch's search is basically impossible.

On YouTube you could make one video and get millions of views. This is unlikely yes, but still possible. In short YouTube is a lot more discoverable, which can help you to grow your channel even if you aren't consistently uploading content.

3. Channel growability

This brings us nicely to the next point. Growing your channel. If you want to make money you will need to have a decently sized audience.

Without discoverability, on Twitch, you need to be live and streaming a lot! Your Twitch channel will grow the most when you are live. So if you want to grow, you need to be constantly connected to the platform, which makes it very time consuming.

Here again YouTube has the edge. With strong discoverability and video archives (that are actually watched by viewers; not so on Twitch) you don't have to be constantly streaming to grow your channel. Once your videos are out there, they are like little foot soldiers, forever finding new viewers.

3. Monetization

Finally! Well done for getting this far. Now that we have the background we can get into the question every streamer has asked at some point. 'YouTube or Twitch? Which is the best platform for making money?'

Both platforms require that you reach certain thresholds to be eligible for channel monetization.

When it comes to ease of monetization, Twitch wins! In order to monetize your channel you just need to become an Affiliate or Partner. To become an Affiliate is relatively easy, becoming a Partner takes longer and offers additional benefits.

In order to qualify as an Affiliate and enable monetization you need:

500 minutes broadcast in the last 30 days

7 unique broadcast days in the last 30 days

An average of 3 concurrent viewers in the last 30 days

50 Followers

To monetize your YouTube channel you need to become a Partner. To become a partner you need:

4,000 watch hours in the last year

1,000 subscribers

Your content is approved by YouTube

You an approved AdSense account linked

With YouTube you will probably have to bust your butt for a good few months before you can even turn on monetization. And then you discover that you only earn around $1 per day on ad revenue!

1. Earn ad revenue

The most popular form of monetization is still displaying ads on your videos. Once you are a Twitch Affiliate or YouTube Partner you will be able to set this up so you can start to earn money on your content.

To make a decent amount of money from ad revenue alone you will need to be, not just big, but huge. And at that level there are far more lucrative ways to make cash!

Bottom line is, that though popular, ad revenue is not a big money maker on either YouTube or Twitch and should not be your sole income source.

2. Subscriptions and channel memberships

Subscriptions were initially introduced on Twitch only for Partners, but recognizing that the smaller streamers also needed a way to monetize Twitch introduced the Affiliate program in 2017. Through the Affiliate program smaller streamers were given access to advertising, subscriptions and currency payments.

Subscriptions are a game changer for many streamers as they provide access to a stable income stream. YouTube followed Twitch in 2018 and introduced channel memberships for Partners.

Outside of YouTube and Twitch there are other subscription based support sites like Patreon that take far less of a cut of the revenue than the two main streaming platforms.

3. Twitch bits and SuperChat

The last form of monetization you will get access to through eligibility, is site specific donations.

On Twitch you get Twitch Bits that can be purchased through Amazon. Viewers use bits to support and cheer in a streamer's chat.

YouTube has recently taken a leaf from Twitch's book and started SuperChat. SuperChat allows viewers to pay to highlight their chat messages. The more you pay the more prominent and longer lasting the highlight.

These are both great monetization strategies, but just like ad revenue and subscriptions both platforms take a sizable share of the revenue.

Whether you meet the eligibility requirements of each platform or not, you can monetize your channel with external tools.

4. Use cost-free donations tools and live alerts

My first choice is Rechaaarge. With one click setup it's a no brainer and, in addition, it helps you monetize the portion of your audience that are not able to support you financially.

Just by trying an app or game, your viewers can donate to you cost-free!

To get started:

Connect your Twitch or Youtube account with one click to activate your profile

Share your personal Rechaaarge link on social media and during your streams or videos

You're all set and ready to go!

5. Use paid donations tools and live alerts

Streamlabs OBS and Streamelements are both stream management tools that have been widely popular among streamers to setup donations. They support the main payment methods and both don't take any of your revenue.

Muxy is a tool dedicated exclusively to Twitch. And, of course, it adds personalized alerts on screen, with a modern and cool design.

6. Sell merchandise

Fans love stuff, and if you do your job well, eventually they will love you too! Convert their enthusiasm into dollar bills by selling physical products like mugs, t-shirts, hoodies etc. emblazoned with your personal brand.

Streamlabs Merch and Teespring are good options if you need a company to handle the entire process of merchandising from beginning to end. If you already have your own design another option is to head over to Merch by Amazon and they will handle everything else.

7. Get brand sponsorship

Finding and getting brand sponsorship usually will make up the majority of a successful content creator's income. As such this is an important part of monetizing your channel.

If you are lucky, you will be approached by brands with sponsorship deals. Either they will pay you to promote their brand or to use their products in your content. If you don't get approached; don't worry.

There are agencies whose sole purpose is to connect brands and content creators. If you want sponsorship then you can approach one such agency and get on their books. YouTube purchased Famebit to help their creators connect with brands. Twitch has the Bounty Board Program which allows streamers to connect with brands directly through their dashboard.

So … which platform is better for your wallet?

My rule of thumb before I wrote this article was: if you are a streamer use Twitch, and if you are a content uploader use YouTube.

I still think Twitch is best for streaming and YouTube for Vod. But now I recognize the differences in each platform and how they can complement each other to increase your payout.

Particularly if you are a streamer on Twitch, YouTube has capabilities to help you grow your channel and exposure. If I wanted to make money streaming I would stream on Twitch and upload short (under 15 mins) highlight videos to YouTube to grow my following on both platforms.

If I were a content uploader and make money on YouTube, I would create a Twitch channel and stream at scheduled times to grow and deepen my relationship with my viewers. And of course, increase my audience monetization.

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Google Introduces New Ways for YouTube Advertisers to Make Money

Google has introduced new capabilities for YouTube ads that will help advertisers drive more conversions.

The new features combine the creative solutions offered by YouTube with the machine learning and measurement solutions offered by Google Ads.

Ad Extensions

YouTube advertisers will soon be able to drive more conversions with a wider variety of video ad extensions.

In the example below, Google shows how a movie studio is using one of the new ad extensions to drive ticket sales.

Other actions that can be taken from the new ad extensions include downloading an app and booking a trip.

These extensions will join the existing location and form extensions for TrueView in-stream ads.

New Measurement Solutions

Google is evolving its Brand Lift solution for YouTube ads in an effort to make it easier for advertisers to measure and act upon upper- and lower-funnel metrics.

Advertisers will soon be able to set up Brand Lift studies directly in Google Ads or Display & Video 360 and view reporting alongside other ad metrics.

Brand Lift studies will also be sent throughout the duration of an advertiser's campaign so they can understand how video ads are influencing viewer perceptions in near real time.

YouTube's Brand Lift studies will include two new metrics:

Lifted users: The number of people who were influenced by an ad.

Cost-per-lifted-users: Advertisers can use this metric to optimize their campaign's effectiveness and cost-efficiency.

Lastly, Google is ramping up investments in its Measurement Partners to ensure advertisers can measure YouTube media with measurement solutions that meet a stricter set of standards.

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‘Egg Boy’ Is Now Donating Money to the Families of Christchurch Shooting Victims

Last weekend, an Austrlian teenager won the hearts and minds of people all around the world when he cracked an egg over the head of Fraser Anning, a far-right Australian politician who implied that immigration and "Muslim fanatics" were responsible for the shooting.

Now, William Connolly, 17, a.k.a. "Egg Boy," (sometimes spelled "EggBoi") has further endeared himself to the public by announcing that he will donate most of the proceeds of a GoFundMe page set up in his honor to the family members of the Christchurch shooting victims. TheGoFundMe page was created to help fund Conn olly's legal fees after he was arrested for egging Fraser.

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According to the organizer of the GoFundMe page, Connolly told him via text that he "plans to send a majority of the money to the victims of the Christchurch terrorist attack." The GoFundMe page in support of Connolly originally said donations would go toward "legal fees" and "buying more eggs." As of this writing, it has raised more than $50,000.

Egg Boy became a hero on social media last Saturday, when he attended a far-right rally in support of Anning and egged the politician mid-speech. Following the egging, Anning attempted to strike him and Connolly was tackled to the ground by some of the politician's supporters.

Connolly was later arrested and released without facing any charges, according to Al Jazeera.

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Anning, who is well-kno wn for making inflammatory and racist comments, attracted ire on social media with a statement saying that "whilst this kind of violent vigilantism can never be justified, what it highlights is the growing fear within our community, both in Australia and New Zealand, of the increasing Muslim presence. Anning added that "the real cause of bloodshed on New Zealand streets today" was the immigration policy that enabled "Muslim fanatics to migrate to New Zealand in the first place."

Anning's statement was prompted by the horrific Christchurch mosque shootings last Thursday, which resulted in 50 people dead and at least 50 wounded. An Australian man, 28-year-old Brenton Harrison Tarrant, has been arrested in connection to the shootings and charged with murder.

Although Connolly has said that he is under strict instructions not to speak out on social media due to the legal proceedings against him, he nonetheless posted a video in which he thanked his fans for their support. The account has since been taken down by Twitter, though some users managed to re-share his video.

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In addition the GoFundMe circulating in support of Connol ly, there is another petition demanding Anning's removal from public office. "Senator Fraser Anning's views have no place in the government of our democratic and multicultural country," the petition reads. "Within the bounds of Australian law, we request that he be pushed to resign from his position as Senator, and if appropriate, be investigated by law enforcement agencies for supporting right wing terrorism." It currently has more than 1.2 million signatures.

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How to be a YouTube star in South Africa

YouTube has established itself as the premier video sharing platform on the Internet.

This has encouraged people to publish videos regularly, gathering a following in their niche. Some of these YouTubers have millions of subscribers and make a good living from their channels.

South Africa is not left out of this trend, and boasts popular YouTube stars with hundreds of thousands of subscribers.

These YouTubers have made it online despite not being from Europe or the United States – showing that you can garner a global following from anywhere in the world thanks to the Internet.

To learn more about what it takes to make it big online, MyBroadband spoke to vlogger Caspar Lee, and Rob Vamplew of the Rob The Ranger channel about being popular South African YouTubers.

Hard work and hustle

Vamplew said that one of the key elements to his success was that he had consistently been uploading videos to his channel for over 10 years, building up a slow and steady subscriber base.

He added that due to the timeless content he produces, focusing on wildlife, his videos continue to gain views years after they were uploaded.

Caspar also highlighted how he developed his following over 7 years of content creation.

Key to his success, he said, was that he started at the right time and found the right audience for his videos.

Vamplew said it is possible to make a living as a South African YouTube star, but "not without some major hustle."

While YouTube offers you money from the ads it runs on your channel, Vamplew said that only channels with incredibly high views can make a living from this income.

Fortunately, there are other ways to make money from YouTube.

"One very common way is having sponsored videos where a company pays to have a product advertised by you in your video," said Vamplew.

Another means of monetisation is through crowdfunding platforms such as Patreon, which "allow viewers to donate to you in return for various rewards".

Don't do it for the money

Vamplew said that if you go into YouTube content creation for the money, however, you're doing it wrong.

"My advice to others is this: Do what makes you happy, make what you enjoy making, expect nothing in return, put the 'You' back in YouTube and with time and consistency your channel will grow," he said.

He added that a good idea is to seek out other YouTube creators so that you can grow together.

Caspar echoed this suggestion, and said that one of the keys to him achieving his success was his collaborations with other YouTubers.

He added that his biggest piece of advice to aspiring YouTube stars is to collaborate with other creators.

Obstacles in South Africa

Caspar believes that the most difficult part of being a YouTuber from South Africa is finding a South African audience.

"Data costs are very high compared to other markets, making it more difficult for locals to stream YouTube on mass," he said.

Vamplew agreed, and said that "those producing content for a largely local audience are restricted by reach and those that are trying to compete internationally are restricted by speed".

Vamplew added that the rise of Indian YouTubers, for example, is down to their cheap, accessible high-speed Internet access – something we "seemingly won't have for another couple of years".

South Africa's most popular YouTubers

Caspar Lee is the most popular South African YouTuber, while Vamplew is the 9th most popular, according to SocialBlade.

Other famous YouTubers from South Africa include rap duo Die Antwoord, fitness buff Peter Carvell, and foodie Liezl Strydom.

Top YouTubers in South Africa Position YouTuber Subscribers 1 Caspar Lee 7,481,623 2 Die Antwoord 2,697,555 3 Peter Carvell 1,441,703 4 Seether 822,138 5 Dan Mace 720,079 6 Liezl Jayne Strydom 706,362 7 Michael Jamison 659,967 8 Pastor Alph Lukau 565,948 9 Rob the Ranger 493,930 10 Caitlin De Ville 440,922 Now read: Vodacom to livestream English FA Cup – How much it costs to watch a game

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Meet the YouTube star who's de-radicalizing young, right-wing men

The far right is the dominant political community on YouTube. It's a flourishing world of men's rights activists, libertarians, anti-feminist atheists, and white nationalists. There are whole channels dedicated to showing "social justice warriors" getting "owned" by various conservative provocateurs. And this has gone largely unanswered by the left.

Enter Natalie Wynn, who's trying to de-radicalize this part of YouTube with an unexpected mix of philosophy and elaborate costumes. And she's making some headway.

"One thing the right wing has done pretty effectively in the last few years is, they've managed to frame the discussion as a kind of puritan, moralistic, sermonizing left versus a kind of edgy, rebellious, punk-rock right," says 30-year-old Wynn. "And I refuse to allow them to get away with that."

On her YouTube channel, Contrapoints, Wynn tries to reframe the debate around issues like free speech, the alt-right, incels, and transgender pronouns in a way that "makes [the far right] reveal their puritanism and their phobias, and has me as the, like, libertine."

Wynn said this as she was holding a giant headpiece trimmed with red and black feathers and a sheep skull. She makes 20-to-45-minute videos that unpack the ideas behind the culture wars, using the philosophy education she got in grad school and the makeup education she got on YouTube. And they're popular. Her top videos get more than 1 million views. She makes enough money for YouTube to be her only job. She's in the top 20 creators on Patreon, a site where fans can give monthly donations to artists.

The skull headpiece is for a character that delivers a trigger warning at the start of a recent video. It's one of four costume changes and three wigs she uses to dissect a popular meme on the far right, "Are Traps Gay?" It means, Is it gay to have sex with a trans woman? While this meme might seem like an offensive but unimportant piece of internet ephemera, Wynn explores what it means for trans women and straight masculinity.

It's fascinating because she takes the internet seriously. After all, that's where political ideas spread these days.

The YouTube algorithm tends to recommend content that gets progressively more extreme, so in just a few clicks, you can go from a mainstream to extreme. That might not be so bad when it takes you from videos about vegetarianism to veganism, but it's dangerous when you go from explanations of the history of the West to racist pseudoscience posted by white nationalists.

University of North Carolina professor Zeynep Tufkeci says that makes YouTube a kind of radicalization machine.

"It seems as if you are never 'hard-core' enough for YouTube’s recommendation algorithm. ... Given its billion or so users, YouTube may be one of the most powerful radicalizing instruments of the 21st century," he said.

In that universe, Wynn is intentionally targeting young white men who've been pulled down a YouTube rabbit hole. And it's working â€" she has a "success" folder on her computer of people whose minds she has changed.

"I see myself as sort of like left’s immune system," Wynn said. "I am fighting against the kind of reactionary forces that will cause people to double down on their reactionary ideas. I’m changing people’s minds. I’m softening them to these issues."

This segment originally aired March 6, 2019 on VICE News Tonight on HBO.

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How to Make Money as a YouTube Celebrity

Credit: rvlsoft/Shutterstock

If you pay attention to famous YouTubers, you'll likely see them take lavish vacations and attend exclusive events. For successful YouTube influencers, it becomes their job. YouTube can make regular people famous. While not everyone can make it on YouTube, the influencers with the most views and subscribers can easily earn a six-figure income.

Do you love creating videos, but aren't sure how to monetize them or make money on the popular video platform? Here's how you can make money as a YouTube celebrity.

What is a YouTube influencer?

Social media influencers may seem like everyday people, but they have a large following online. People care about what they say and are likely to take their recommendations. Since people trust what they say, brands are willing to pay a lot of money for influencers to promote their products.

"A YouTube influencer is anyone who creates content on the YouTube platform, has a significant following and influences a group of people," said Beca Alexander, founder and president of influencer casting agency, Socialyte.

How to make money as a YouTube influencer

There are a couple ways to make money as a YouTube influencer. If you have a big enough following, you can money through sponsorships, affiliate links and advertisements.

Advertisements

In the past, anyone could sign up to make money on the platform, but YouTube announced new requirements for its YouTube Partner Program in January 2018. According to Google Support, when a channel reaches 4,000 watch hours in the previous 12 months and 1,000 subscribers, it will be considered for the partner program.

The YouTube Partner Program allows creators to monetize their videos on the platform. YouTubers make money from advertisements played during their content and when YouTube Premium subscribers watch their videos.

"Making money through ads is still one of the primary ways of monetizing your channel, with YouTube providing … different options for generating ad revenue on your videos," said David Ambrogio, SEO and content strategist at Online Optimism.

Sponsorships and affiliate links

The most effective way to make money on YouTube is through partnerships with brands. If you have an engaged following that trusts you, brands will pay you to endorse their products or services.

"Most YouTube celebrities make money from brand endorsement deals," Alexander said. "This is usually done through the creation of content, which will be published and promoted to their [the influencer's] following or audience."

You can create entire videos focused on the sponsored brand or incorporate the products within your video. For example, beauty YouTubers create videos about how to apply makeup using specific sponsored products.

"Sponsorships get you paid by signing you up as a spokesperson for their brand, putting you on their own YouTube videos and paying you to plug in their products to your own content," said Ambrogio.

When you're partnering with a brand, you can also make money through affiliate links, which is when you receive a commission when a viewer clicks on a link and makes a purchase. Just include the link in the video's caption and encourage viewers to click on it after the video.

How to build a following

While posting a video every week may seem simple enough, becoming an influencer takes much more work. You must be willing to put in the time and work to build your audience's trust.

"To gain a following on YouTube, or any digital platform, the content created should be organic and authentic," said Alexander. "Storytelling that connects the creator to the audience and makes them care about what the creator has to say is how influence is built."

Read this Business News Daily guide to learn about how to become a social media influencer.

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