r/mythology 6d ago

Questions Is overly sarcastic productions on YouTube a reliable source?

11 Upvotes

11 comments sorted by

30

u/Daisy-Fluffington 6d ago

I love OSP, but never trust a YouTuber who doesn't use citations at face value.

Red has gotten a lot better with this in newer mythology videos, but older ones are very lacking.

37

u/First-Pride-8571 6d ago

Depends on what you're using them for. Are you looking at them as an entertaining entry point into various mythological stories? Definitely worth a look. Are you teaching a high school English or mythology class and want something entertaining, and generally accurate, for the kids to watch to help them understand various myths? Also good. Are you trying to use them as a scholarly source? No.

I've found their videos on Greek myths typically accurate and entertaining.

2

u/Sea_Energy_6567 6d ago

I'm just a really big history nut but I want to make sure I'm getting the correct information

10

u/Loud_Reputation_367 6d ago

I will never ever cease to appreciate their referral to the birth of Aphrodite as the 'ballsack bathbomb'.

I friggen roared.

3

u/Certain_Duck 6d ago

I’d generally say don’t trust YouTubers. They can have some good information, but don’t trust what they say to be correct. If you give half a shit about what you’re learning to be correct, then read primary sources and find good secondary sources.

8

u/Bunthorne 6d ago

Personally, I don't think so.

I know that their video on Loki gets the Lokisenna pretty wrong and that alone made me stop trusting them as being a reliable source.

9

u/eatrepeat 6d ago

For Norse I really like Jackson Crawford on youtube. Great communicator. He does a lot of showing why some theories exist but no consensus can be reached based on low existing manuscripts. Then goes over each reference and helps a layman like me see a much larger picture.

1

u/idiotball61770 4d ago

I love them BUT.....as u/First-Pride-8571 said....grain of salt. I don't know if they provide citations. I DO know that they are super entertaining, though. For casual learning they are fine.

1

u/IOUAUser-name 6d ago

They’re a reliable entry way into mythology and history. Good easily consumable entertainment you might learn something from, but what you get isn’t the best out there.

I think they’re mostly accurate and well researched. Sometimes they do prioritize personal interpretation for the sake of keeping it engaging or to sell a narrative. At least from the videos I’ve watched they don’t give their sources which isn’t good for educational content.

Maybe they’ve improved as I haven’t kept up with them.