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Here’s A Brief History Of The YouTube Coming Out Video

Curtis M. Wong is the Senior Editor of HuffPost Queer Voices

British Olympic diver Tom Daley made international headlines in 2013 after revealing in an emotionally charged YouTube video that he was in a relationship with another man.

Nearly four years later, Daley is happily married, having tied the knot with Academy Award-winning screenwriter Dustin Lance Black in May. The video, meanwhile, remains an indelible part of the 23-year-old’s public persona, having garnered more than 12 million views since its release.

Daley, of course, isn’t the first person to have come out on YouTube. Company officials pointed to a pair of 2006 clips, seen here and here, as two of the earliest examples of LGBTQ people who turned to the video-sharing platform just a year after its launch to discuss matters of sexuality. Still, as a public figure, Daley undoubtedly helped usher the concept of coming out on YouTube into the mainstream, as did pop singer Troye Sivan, who also came out in a poignant video that same year. These days, coming out videos on YouTube are more popular than ever in terms of both views and uploads, the site said.

While YouTube did not provide specific numbers, officials provided HuffPost with a chart showing a dramatic increase in coming out video uploads since it was launched over a decade ago. Interestingly, August saw the highest number of coming out-related content in YouTube’s history, two months before National Coming Out Day (Oct. 11).

“Coming out videos are a special and important part of YouTube culture,”
Jamie Byrne, who is the director of YouTube creators, told HuffPost.

“The LGBTQ creators who share their personal stories through our platform inspire us with their acts of courage and remind us of why it’s important to make sure YouTube remains a place where everyone can have a voice.”

Daley’s video, though high profile, isn’t the most popular of the bunch. In January 2015, Austin and Aaron Rhodes (or “The Rhodes Bros”) released “Coming Out To Dad,” in which the twin brothers filmed themselves tearing up as they opened came out as gay to their father on the telephone. With over 25 million views, it’s YouTube’s most-viewed coming out video of all time.

Though The Rhodes Bros top the list, other media personalities have found creative ways to use YouTube to open up about their sexualities in creative ways.