Reply girl

A reply girl was a type of female YouTube user who uploaded video responses to popular YouTube videos, at a time when such responses were displayed prominently by the site.
In 2012, YouTube gave significant weight to video responses when suggesting further viewing for any given video, putting them "almost automatically" at the top of the list. Users known as "reply girls" realised that by responding to popular videos, such as those featured on the YouTube home page, their own content could receive a significant audience. By selecting a suggestive thumbnail for the response, often filmed in a push-up bra or low-cut top, posters could encourage viewers to click the image and view the video. Although many users would click the "dislike" button on the videos, this was interpreted by YouTube's algorithm as legitimate engagement, and the videos would be ranked more highly. The exploitation of YouTube's algorithm through the use of "sexually suggestive thumbnails" would allow for the monetization of the reply girl's content. The YouTube algorithm would be utilized by companies to detect which influencer would attract a larger audience. A large audience would allow companies to expose their products in a new medium and differing target audiences can be formed. For example, beauty gurus attract young men and women who are interested in expanding their knowledge of makeup, therefore, companies such as Sephora or Ulta are willing to hire the influencer for brand deals. If companies noticed the popularity of the reply girls then their monetary value would increase due to external revenue from brand deals or partnerships. Prior to YouTube and social media, companies were promoting their products through the television, radio, or newspaper.
With YouTube rewarding users for large numbers of video views, reply girls were able to earn significant income by exploiting this aspect of the website. Megan Lee Heart, whose YouTube channel reached 38,000 subscribers and had over 47 million views at the time, made tens of thousands of dollars, claiming to have made $80,000 on her channel page description.
Alejandra Gaitan was thought to be earning around a hundred dollars for each of the "short, rambling [and] usually pointless" videos that she posted, with some of the more popular ones raising close to $1000. Gaitan's username for her channel was "thereplygirl" and her videos were titled as "Re: Insert Trending Video Name Here" which would result in her video having priority because the previous YouTube algorithm would suggest videos that were correlated or similar to the previous video watched by the viewer. Considering the fact that Gaitan was able to manipulate the YouTube algorithm, YouTube users began to revolt and created "anti-reply girl" videos in protest of the low quality but high quantity of videos posted by reply girls. Male YouTube users would make a mockery of the reply girls by exposing their chest as well and expressing their distaste towards the content being produced. The revolt was addressing the "spamming" of the platform along with the fact that videos of content creators who were creating original content were being neglected by the YouTube algorithm. The platform would be spammed because followers of Gaitan began to acknowledge the profits that she would receive and wanted to jump on the bandwagon. Being a reply girl became known as an easier way to become an influencer on YouTube.
In March 2012, YouTube updated its algorithm to give less weight to suggested videos which were only watched briefly by users, announcing that the site would be "focusing more prominently on time watched". Gaitan expressed concern that this would "kill almost every reply channel", despite that being the stated intention of the action. YouTube previously wanted to base the value off of view count because they believed it would "reward great videos" and although this was true to some extent, it excluded a variety of factors. For example, clickbait became prominent amongst content creators who were aspiring to increase the monetary value of their video. Clickbait is the process of posting titles that have little correlation to the video they have produced. Although the video will most likely be clicked on, viewers have a tendency to leave at an earlier time due to the lack of correlation between the video and title or the fact that the video will address the title of the video after an excess amount of time. Reply girls would also misuse the algorithm that focused on view count by attracting viewers through provocative thumbnails, therefore, misleading the actual concept of the video.
YouTube's "algorithm is the single most important engine of [its] growth," and utilizes a formula that incorporates neural networks, vast pools of videos, and the viewers. Shifting the algorithm to update the value of each video will provide better content for the viewers, therefore, increasing the screen time of the viewers as well. Considering this fact, the algorithm is not only responsible for which content is made visible to the viewer, but it is also responsible for what content is produced by the creators. One of the engineers at YouTube portrayed the algorithm as the "largest scale and most sophisticated industrial recommendation systems in existence."
YouTube has over 1.5 billion users encompassing the globe which has surpassed "the number of households that own televisions." The overwhelming growth of YouTube has altered the progression of cable television because younger generations have transitioned towards a different medium. The alteration of YouTube's algorithm is extremely important as it determines their progression as a company in a society constantly evolving and producing new technology as time passes. Reply girls have mainly disappeared from YouTube but have been replaced by reaction videos mainly prominent within the channel known as FBE. The reaction videos refrain from the use of sexual images as thumbnails and primarily focus on popular topics such as video games, music, or movies.