2,000 subscribers vanished in a click when YouTube abruptly removed Bitcoin broadcaster Roxom TV from its platform on May 14.
Roxom TV is a relatively new media platform that focuses on Bitcoin (BTC) news, culture, and education. It was founded by crypto entrepreneurs Borja and Helena Martel Seward in November 2024 and established its presence on YouTube shortly after.
Roxom TV Speaks Out About YouTube Ban
Alex McShane, director of Bitcoin strategy at Roxom TV, told Cryptonews that no clear explanation was given as to why the channel was removed by YouTube.
“Our transcripts from recent shows we’ve published don’t align with the reasons listed in the emails sent to us by YouTube,” McShane said.
According to the email from YouTube, Roxom TV violated YouTube’s “harmful and dangerous content” policy.
Source: Roxom TVAfter appealing the decision, Roxom TV received another email from YouTube that stated the channel continues to violate policy and will not be put back on the platform.
With little communication from YouTube, McShane explained that he can only guess the ban was automatically issued by a bot that mistakenly viewed the channel as promoting cryptocurrency projects.
“I think this was an automatic ban triggered by bot moderation, not understanding satire or mistaking our coverage of crypto scams and hacks as promoting them somehow, but it’s really hard to say,” he said.
McShane added that Roxom TV streamed live content on YouTube most of the time, which could have made the algorithm more sensitive, particularly to Roxom’s live political coverage featuring Bitcoin.
While Roxom TV’s YouTube channel remains banned, McShane is confident it will be placed back on the platform. “But we need a manual human appeal review; so far we’ve only had bots reviewing our appeal, which was auto denied,” he remarked.
YouTube Cracks Down on Gambling Content: Does Crypto Qualify?
While Roxom TV is the most recent Bitcoin-focused channel to be removed from YouTube, the platform underwent a “crypto-purge” in December 2019.
Sources note that at least 35 crypto-focused channels were impacted during the purge, including popular shows like Bad Crypto Podcast and Altcoin Daily. Additional channels from major media outlets Bankless and Cointelegraph were also removed around this time, but have since been put back on YouTube.
A CNBC TV18 article states that channels were removed for violating community guidelines, but that the removal of the content was actually due to machine learning algorithms.
While this likely was the case in December 2019, YouTube has recently taken steps to crack down on gambling-related content. On March 4, YouTube sent out a public statement warning against promoting gambling sites or related content. YouTube also made it clear that it may take down videos that “promise guaranteed returns.”
McShane was made aware of this statement and noted that YouTube’s message to Roxom TV made no mention of violating these terms specifically.
YouTube Algorithm Triggers
However, YouTube’s algorithm may be unable to detect the differences between crypto and gambling content. This may also be due to certain words or instances that can trigger these algorithms.
Nikki Martinez, head of short form video content at Hype, told Cryptonews that she has seen creators’ content get flagged or shadowbanned for using certain trigger words or phrases. Martinez currently works with a global network of creators at Hype to produce content for crypto clients at scale.
“One time, I was even shadowbanned on social media platform TikTok for talking about why one of my accounts was banned,” Martinez stated.
Martinez added that TikTok’s moderation system can flag videos that sound like “guaranteed income,” “easy money,” “instant payout,” or even token names. She noted that the platform will automatically label these videos as scams or misleading financial advice.
“The moderation is largely automated and tends to overcorrect, removing or limiting content based on certain keywords or context,” she pointed out. “Even links can be flagged as suspicious, especially when posted by new accounts.”
Martinez also explained that most video platforms, like YouTube, don’t want creators driving users off the platform, especially when it comes to financial products.
Fortunately, both TikTok and YouTube offer users an option to appeal.
“I’ve seen creators successfully appeal takedowns and go on to reach 1M+ views after their content was reinstated,” Martinez said. “But these bans are becoming more common as TikTok, YouTube, and Meta face increasing pressure to regulate financial content globally, especially in industries like crypto that are still unregulated in many regions.”
Tips For Crypto Creators Using Centralized Social Media Platforms
Given recent crackdowns on crypto-related content, McShane noted it’s important for Web3 creators to support decentralized protocols like Nostr or Calaxy where content cannot be censored.
Yet given the reach of YouTube and TikTok, many content creators may want to continue using these platforms. In this case, Martinez suggests that creators sharing crypto content be mindful of financial language.
“Success on TikTok often comes down to how you say something. Subtle narratives like ‘side hustles,’ ‘digital income,’ or phrasing like ‘withdraw once approved’ (instead of ‘instant payout’) tend to perform better and avoid violations,” she remarked.
Martinez further pointed out that some centralized social media platforms are more crypto-friendly than others.
“X (Twitter) is by far the most open and effective for crypto content. But if you’re posting about unregulated industries on Instagram, TikTok or YouTube, it’s essential to build a presence elsewhere too – email lists, gated communities, or Telegram/Discord. You never want to be dependent on one platform,” she said.“
Martinez believes that content creators who will win long term are the ones who can tell crypto stories in a way that feels accessible, culturally relevant, and algorithm safe.
Wendy O—a popular crypto-content creator with about 2050 subscribers on YouTube—told Cryptonews that her channel has never been banned by YouTube. Her advice to other creators is “to read the centralized platform’s policy, disclose and be cautious on verbiage.”
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