Hi, my name is Trevor Freeman, and I would like to explain a situation I have observed on the Internet, which I call the Misanthropic Audience Paradox.
The Misanthropic Audience Paradox:
A phenomenon in which recommendation algorithms on a social media platform serve a creator’s content to viewers predisposed to dislike it. Instead of reaching an appreciative audience, the content is shown to users with opposing tastes or values (such as restoration videos shown to preservation purists), thereby amplifying negative feedback instead of engagement.
The paradox applies to any platform that uses recommendation algorithms to serve content, such as video-sharing sites, social media sites, podcast services, et cetera.
Below are a couple of examples to illustrate my point.
Example #1: Piano Tuning
I recently came across a YouTube channel called The Piano Doctor. The young man behind the channel, Josiah Jackson, is in his 20s. He regularly uploads videos of himself cleaning, repairing, and tuning pianos of all types. His content combines old-world craftsmanship and skill with digital storytelling. The content is very compelling, which is why he has built an audience of almost 900,000 subscribers on YouTube as of mid-2025.
In a typical video, Mr. Jackson includes “before and after” clips of him playing the same piano before and after tuning, demonstrating the improvement. One thing I find curious is how every video has hundreds of comments from people who like the sound of an out-of-tune piano.
First, I am genuinely surprised at the number of people who claim to like, enjoy, or prefer the sound of an out-of-tune piano. It is bizarre and unexpected how many of these contrarian viewers there are! The out-of-tune piano objectively does not sound good. Why would a bunch of people who like out-of-tune pianos be watching videos of piano tuning? The user probably wouldn’t seek out videos on their own of things they dislike, but an algorithm recommended it to them.
Example #2: Furniture Restoration
Another popular niche on YouTube is furniture restoration channels. Watching a person invest their time and effort into restoring and fixing a piece of furniture is certainly engaging. Seeing the transformation from start to finish gets the viewer emotionally involved.
And yet…these furniture restoration channels really draw out the critics in the comments section. Some frequently repeated comments are: “Should have left it original” or “It’s only original once.” And often times, the comments are far less polite or civil.
Again, I ask: why do people who hate furniture restoration end up watching videos about furniture restoration? Because an algorithm recommended it to them. If these users hate watching old dressers and tables get restored, why wouldn’t they watch videos about any other subject in their leisure time?
Example #3: Car restoration/modification
Automotive restoration and “build” channels are another vast niche on YouTube. There are thousands of channels where people restore and modify every kind of car, truck, motorcycle or vehicle. Objectively, things like replacing broken or worn parts, repairing rusted areas, upgrading wheels, tires, and engine are all things that improve an old car.
But, these auto restoration videos also bring out the critics with comments like: “It’s only original once” or “Don’t paint it, love the patina.” These keyboard warriors are very critical of the efforts of the person who not only did the work, but also recorded and edited the process into a concise and somewhat entertaining or informative video.
Isn’t it funny that people who hate car restorations spend their free time watching videos of restoration projects?
Example #4: Home renovation/DIY projects
When it comes to Do-It-Yourself (DIY) and home renovation projects, this is another space on the Internet that’s full of people with ambition and creativity. There are countless channels and videos dedicated to everything from simple projects to complete transformations.
This is also where I see some of the meanest and most personal attack comments. Everything from the creator’s color choices to their technique while working is harshly criticized by commenters. Minor details visible in the background that have nothing to do with the content of the video can and often do become the bulk of the conversation in the comments.
Furthermore, the comment section is very concerned with the safety of the content creator, encouraging them to wear masks, gloves, and full personal protective equipment (PPE) at all times.
Isn’t it remarkable that folks who hate renovation projects choose to spend their time watching home renovation videos?
Anyway, I have made my point. Content creators are working tirelessly to create high-effort, original, and creative works, and paradoxically, the algorithms serve this content to the “wrong audience” who cannot wait to tear the creators down in the comments section. The content that a creator makes is paradoxically shown to viewers who are cynical, critical, or pessimistic about that specific type of content.
This toxic behavior from commenters (haters) really upsets me and makes the Internet not a fun place to be.
