Posted By: Lena

I honestly think YouTube is making a big mistake by putting so much focus on Shorts. I understand why they’re doing it. TikTok became a huge competitor, and YouTube wants to keep people on its platform. Shorts generate a lot of views, and they make good advertising money. But YouTube has always been known for one thing: long-form videos.

People came to YouTube because they wanted tutorials, documentaries, gaming videos, podcasts, reviews, educational content, and entertainment that lasted longer than 30 or 60 seconds. That’s what made YouTube different from TikTok in the first place.

Now it feels like YouTube is trying so hard to compete with TikTok that it’s forgetting what made people love the platform. Instead of building on its strengths, it’s copying someone else’s formula.

One of the biggest problems is that many creators are saying their long-form videos aren’t getting promoted like they used to. Shorts seem to be taking priority in recommendations, on the home page, and even in search results. When you’re trying to find a detailed video on a topic, you’re often shown several Shorts before you ever see a full-length video.

That makes it frustrating for viewers and creators alike. As a viewer, I don’t always want a 30-second clip. Sometimes I want a complete explanation that actually teaches me something. As a creator, it can feel like all the time spent filming, editing, and producing a quality video doesn’t matter as much because the algorithm is favoring short clips.

YouTube doesn’t have to become TikTok to stay relevant. It already built one of the biggest video platforms in the world by doing something different. There’s nothing wrong with having Shorts, but they shouldn’t come at the expense of the creators who helped build the platform through long-form content.

I think YouTube needs to find a better balance. Promote Shorts if people enjoy them, but don’t bury long-form videos in the process. Give viewers the chance to discover both types of content without making one dominate the other.

At the end of the day, YouTube became successful because it was YouTube—not because it tried to be TikTok. Hopefully, the company remembers that before it pushes away the creators and viewers who made the platform what it is today.