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YouTube hits pause on Rewind video tradition because 2020 was 'different'

YouTube said that given all that's happened this year, 'it doesn't feel right' to make a regular video celebrating 2020.
Credit: AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File
This March 20, 2018 file photo shows the YouTube app on an iPad in Baltimore.

WASHINGTON — For the first time in more than a decade, YouTube won't be releasing a video celebrating the year's most impactful creators and trends. 

The company said its "Rewind" year-in-review videos were always meant "to be a celebration of you." 

"But 2020 has been different. And it doesn't feel right to carry on as if it weren't. So, we're taking a break from Rewind this year," the company announced in a statement posted Thursday on Twitter

Even with the COVID-19 pandemic, a focus on racial injustice and the U.S. presidential election, YouTube thanked its users for making a difference in 2020 and finding ways to lift people up, help them cope and laugh during a hard year. 

The company has faced some criticism in recent years over its "Rewind" videos.

The 2018 edition broke the record for most-disliked video of all-time on the site after leaving out some of YouTube's most controversial creators. For 2019, the company kept things simple and focused on highlighting the year's top content and creators. 

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