The following is posted for the user's information. No endorsement is given nor implied.
What Is It?
Churches use it as a way to make videos of sermons, ministry activities, and tours of their ministries available to their communities via the internet. Some have started similar sites. Christtube is one example.
International Ministries and American Baptist Home Missionary Societies use this channel of social media.
How to use it:
Go to the home page and click on "Create Account"
Start with their safety page which contains good guidance, via an animated movie.
There are links to tutorials that will assist you in taking your video from videocamera to Youtube.
What to look out for:
Who owns the video once the video is posted on the site?
Who is responsible/culpable if it is determined that the video contains (churches and organizations may be held so by the actions of their members with or without official sponsorship):
images and/or video of a minor
writing/copy that is determined to be slanderous or libelous
How to use this social media constructively:
Write and adopt as a church a social media policy that guides the use of the tools (including YouTube). See the one the GRR Board of Ministries has put into effect.
Practice and enforce the social media policy guidelines that the church adopts.
Training in technical and privacy issues
Mentoring of those involved in growing their wisdom of discernment.
Accountability processes that include both formative and summative evaluations.