Yes, law enforcement can profit from YouTube content, but they can choose not to do so

ATLANTA — It’s no secret that online influencers can make big bucks creating content on social media. 

11Alive VERIFY viewer Dennis wanted to know if this applies to authorities. Dennis asked if law enforcement agencies profit from YouTube videos showing police chases or arrest footage.

We looked into the the question to find an answer. Here’s what we discovered.

Can law enforcement agencies profit from YouTube videos showing police chases or arrest footage?

Yes, law enforcement agencies can profit from YouTube channels, but they may choose not to do so.

Denish Shah, GSU professor and founding director of The Social Media Intelligence Lab, said anyone can make money from YouTube content, as long as they meet the requirements. 

He said if you are present on the platform, with interesting original content, and you are in compliance with YouTube’s policies and guidelines — you are eligible.

In the United States, YouTube said you must get 1,000 subscribers with 4,000 valid public watch hours in the last 12 months, or get 1,000 subscribers with 10 million valid public shorts views in the last 90 days, and undergo a review process for final approval.

“As long as you meet those requirements in terms of nature of content, nature of the channel, having enough number of subscribers, having enough number of videos that have been that has been watched, then YouTube will decide whether that content and that channel qualifies for monetization,” Shah said.

So, yes, while law enforcement agencies can profit from online content, that does not mean they choose to.

For example, we reached out to the Atlanta Police Department, which has more than 16,000 subscribers and videos that gain thousands and thousands of views. APD said its social media accounts are not monetized.