Bit Chute Limited, BitChute's corporate identity, was registered by Ray Vahey in January 2017 in Newbury, England. Its name was conceived from a portmanteau of the words "bit", a unit of information in computing, and "parachute." At the time of the site's launch, Vahey described BitChute as an alternative to mainstream platforms; he believed these platforms had demonstrated "increased levels of censorship" over the previous few years by banning and demonetising users (barring them from receiving advertising revenue), and "tweaking algorithms to send certain content into obscurity". In 2018, the creators of BitChute described themselves as a "small team making a stand against Internet censorship because we believe it is the right thing to do."
BitChute's founder Ray Vahey has described BitChute as "politically neutral". Hope Not Hate wrote in their 2020 report that "in actuality, the company chooses to almost exclusively promote content and producers that engage in hate speech and harmful misinformation" and that the "vile and dangerous content that abounds on BitChute is a result of deliberate decisions on the part of their founder and team". Bellingcat reported in 2021 that Vahey used the platform's Twitter account to promote antisemitic conspiracy theories, COVID-19 misinformation, and QAnon content.
Some creators who have been banned from YouTube or had their channels demonetised subsequently migrated to BitChute. The far-right conspiracy theory channel InfoWars migrated to BitChute after being banned by YouTube in 2018. Other creators maintain a presence on YouTube and on BitChute, and some post more extreme content on BitChute while using YouTube for less extreme material. Prominent far-right and alt-right video creators who have cross-posted to both YouTube and BitChute include Lauren Southern, Stefan Molyneux, Millennial Woes, and Paul Joseph Watson.
BitChute does not rely on advertising, and users can send payments to video creators directly. Since its launch, the site has promoted its use of the peer-to-peer technology WebTorrent as a means to decentralise hosting and reduce costs. BitChute allows creators to monetise the videos they publish on the platform by linking to fundraising websites including SubscribeStar, PayPal, and cryptocurrency processors. Although PayPal banned BitChute themselves from using their service, BitChute still links to PayPal pages for creators who choose to use them.
At launch, the site claimed it was using peer-to-peer WebTorrent technology. However, a November 2019 report by Fredrick Brennan, published in The Daily Dot, failed to find any evidence of peer-to-peer data transfer in BitChute's videos. All videos Brennan downloaded came directly from BitChute's servers, with no part of the videos received from peers. According to Brennan, magnet links on the site do not work. Brennan challenged BitChute's use of the word "delist" to describe deplatforming users, saying that the wording is misleading in that it makes BitChute seem falsely similar to BitTorrent (where a site maintains one "list" of content, but independent trackers may be created as well), when in reality BitChute is just deleting a user's videos from the BitChute site. According to Ars Technica in April 2021, the option to host videos using WebTorrent on BitChute "appears to have been deprecated".
Maxwell, Andy (29 January 2017). "BitChute is a BitTorrent-Powered YouTube Alternative". TorrentFreak. Archived from the original on 9 December 2017. Retrieved 10 December 2017. https://torrentfreak.com/bitchute-is-a-bittorrent-powered-youtube-alternative-170129/
Schroeder, Audra (2 November 2018). "Far-right conspiracy vloggers have a new home". The Daily Dot. Archived from the original on 4 May 2019. Retrieved 4 May 2019. https://www.dailydot.com/upstream/bitchute/
Dearden, Lizzie (22 July 2020). "Inside the UK-based site that has become the far right's YouTube". The Independent. Archived from the original on 5 August 2020. Retrieved 14 August 2020. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/bitchute-far-right-youtube-neo-nazi-terrorism-videos-a9632981.html
Known for accommodating far-right individuals and conspiracy theorists[4][2][5][6][7][3][8][9]
Known for hosting hateful material[10][3][11][12][13][14][15]
Daro, Ishmael N.; Lytvynenko, Jane (18 April 2018). "Right-Wing YouTubers Think It's Only A Matter Of Time Before They Get Kicked Off The Site". BuzzFeed News. Archived from the original on 5 July 2018. Retrieved 4 May 2019. https://www.buzzfeed.com/ishmaeldaro/right-wing-youtube-alternative-platforms
Trujillo, Milo; Gruppi, Maurício; Buntain, Cody; Horne, Benjamin D. (13 July 2020). "What is BitChute?: Characterizing the". Proceedings of the 31st ACM Conference on Hypertext and Social Media. Association for Computing Machinery. pp. 139–140. arXiv:2004.01984. doi:10.1145/3372923.3404833. ISBN 9781450370981. S2CID 220434725. 9781450370981
Maxwell, Andy (29 January 2017). "BitChute is a BitTorrent-Powered YouTube Alternative". TorrentFreak. Archived from the original on 9 December 2017. Retrieved 10 December 2017. https://torrentfreak.com/bitchute-is-a-bittorrent-powered-youtube-alternative-170129/
Brennan, Fredrick (27 November 2019). "Bitchute claims to be a decentralized platform—that's not true". The Daily Dot. Archived from the original on 28 November 2019. Retrieved 28 November 2019. /wiki/Fredrick_Brennan
Chant, Tim De (29 April 2021). "Conspiracy theorist said death threats were "jokes"—but jury didn't buy it". Ars Technica. Archived from the original on 29 April 2021. Retrieved 18 May 2021. https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2021/04/conspiracy-theorist-said-death-threats-were-jokes-but-jury-didnt-buy-it/
Schroeder, Audra (2 November 2018). "Far-right conspiracy vloggers have a new home". The Daily Dot. Archived from the original on 4 May 2019. Retrieved 4 May 2019. https://www.dailydot.com/upstream/bitchute/
"Bit Chute Limited — Overview". Companies House. Archived from the original on 9 December 2019. Retrieved 14 August 2020. https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/company/10637289
"BitChute — Terms & Conditions". BitChute. Archived from the original on 15 August 2020. Retrieved 14 August 2020. https://support.bitchute.com/policy/terms
"BitChute". Archived from the original on 3 March 2018. Retrieved 10 April 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) (pop-up notice) https://web.archive.org/web/20180303222825/https://www.bitchute.com/hashtag/rap
Maxwell, Andy (29 January 2017). "BitChute is a BitTorrent-Powered YouTube Alternative". TorrentFreak. Archived from the original on 9 December 2017. Retrieved 10 December 2017. https://torrentfreak.com/bitchute-is-a-bittorrent-powered-youtube-alternative-170129/
Alexander, Julia (7 March 2018). "Controversial YouTubers head to alternative platforms in wake of 'purge'". Polygon. Archived from the original on 4 May 2019. Retrieved 4 May 2019. https://www.polygon.com/2018/3/7/17087668/steemit-dtube-bitchute-youtube-purge
Blake, Andrew (14 November 2018). "BitChute, YouTube alternative, cries foul over apparent punt from PayPal". The Washington Times. Archived from the original on 27 November 2018. Retrieved 28 November 2018. https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2018/nov/14/bitchute-youtube-alternative-cries-foul-over-appar/
Newton, Casey (15 November 2018). "Facebook has a growing morale problem". The Verge. Archived from the original on 4 May 2019. Retrieved 4 May 2019. https://www.theverge.com/2018/11/15/18096027/facebook-nyt-report-morale-definers-sandberg-kaplan
Blake, Andrew (14 November 2018). "BitChute, YouTube alternative, cries foul over apparent punt from PayPal". The Washington Times. Archived from the original on 27 November 2018. Retrieved 28 November 2018. https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2018/nov/14/bitchute-youtube-alternative-cries-foul-over-appar/
Andrews, Frank; Pym, Ambrose (24 February 2021). "The Websites Sustaining Britain's Far-Right Influencers". Bellingcat. Archived from the original on 24 February 2021. Retrieved 25 February 2021. https://www.bellingcat.com/news/uk-and-europe/2021/02/24/the-websites-sustaining-britains-far-right-influencers/
Brennan, Fredrick (27 November 2019). "Bitchute claims to be a decentralized platform—that's not true". The Daily Dot. Archived from the original on 28 November 2019. Retrieved 28 November 2019. /wiki/Fredrick_Brennan
Hayden, Michael Edison (11 January 2019). "A Problem of Epik Proportions". Southern Poverty Law Center. Archived from the original on 12 January 2019. Retrieved 12 January 2019. https://www.splcenter.org/hatewatch/2019/01/11/problem-epik-proportions
Martineau, Paris (6 November 2018). "How Right-Wing Social Media Site Gab Got Back Online". Wired. ISSN 1059-1028. Archived from the original on 2 May 2019. Retrieved 4 May 2019. https://www.wired.com/story/how-right-wing-social-media-site-gab-got-back-online/
Butini, Cecilia (2 March 2020). "Germany to force social media companies to report hate speech to police". Coda. Archived from the original on 8 August 2020. Retrieved 14 August 2020. https://www.codastory.com/authoritarian-tech/social-media-hate-speech-germany/
P, Jamie (7 August 2020). "Bitchute Blocked by Twitter? Here's Why". Tech Times. Archived from the original on 15 December 2020. Retrieved 14 August 2020. https://www.techtimes.com/articles/251654/20200807/breaking-twitter-blocks-tweets-from-u-ks-far-right-youtubes-rival-bitchute.htm
Andrews, Frank; Pym, Ambrose (24 February 2021). "The Websites Sustaining Britain's Far-Right Influencers". Bellingcat. Archived from the original on 24 February 2021. Retrieved 25 February 2021. https://www.bellingcat.com/news/uk-and-europe/2021/02/24/the-websites-sustaining-britains-far-right-influencers/
Hamilton, Fiona. "'Hateful' BitChute video site is first test for Ofcom". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 2 February 2021. https://www.thetimes.com/business-money/technology/article/hateful-video-site-is-first-test-for-ofcom-dbd2cb6z7
"BitChute - A Very British Problem". Community Security Trust. 28 January 2021. Archived from the original on 28 January 2021. Retrieved 2 February 2021. https://cst.org.uk/news/blog/2021/01/28/bitchute-a-very-british-problem
"Community Guidelines". BitChute. Archived from the original on 28 April 2020. Retrieved 25 February 2021. https://support.bitchute.com/policy/guidelines#prohibited-content
Andrews, Frank; Pym, Ambrose (24 February 2021). "The Websites Sustaining Britain's Far-Right Influencers". Bellingcat. Archived from the original on 24 February 2021. Retrieved 25 February 2021. https://www.bellingcat.com/news/uk-and-europe/2021/02/24/the-websites-sustaining-britains-far-right-influencers/
McLaughlin, Martyn (3 June 2023). "Police Scotland launches investigation into racist abuse and threats aimed at Humza Yousaf". The Scotsman. Archived from the original on 3 June 2023. Retrieved 16 August 2023. https://www.scotsman.com/news/politics/police-scotland-launches-investigation-into-racist-abuse-and-threats-aimed-at-humza-yousaf-4168374
Known for accommodating far-right individuals and conspiracy theorists[4][2][5][6][7][3][8][9]
Hayden, Michael Edison (11 January 2019). "A Problem of Epik Proportions". Southern Poverty Law Center. Archived from the original on 12 January 2019. Retrieved 12 January 2019. https://www.splcenter.org/hatewatch/2019/01/11/problem-epik-proportions
"BitChute: A Hotbed of Hate". Anti-Defamation League. 31 August 2020. Archived from the original on 4 September 2020. Retrieved 4 September 2020. https://www.adl.org/blog/bitchute-a-hotbed-of-hate
Andrews, Frank; Pym, Ambrose (24 February 2021). "The Websites Sustaining Britain's Far-Right Influencers". Bellingcat. Archived from the original on 24 February 2021. Retrieved 25 February 2021. https://www.bellingcat.com/news/uk-and-europe/2021/02/24/the-websites-sustaining-britains-far-right-influencers/
Dearden, Lizzie (22 July 2020). "Inside the UK-based site that has become the far right's YouTube". The Independent. Archived from the original on 5 August 2020. Retrieved 14 August 2020. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/bitchute-far-right-youtube-neo-nazi-terrorism-videos-a9632981.html
Davis, Gregory (20 July 2020). "Bitchute: Platforming Hate and Terror in the UK" (PDF). Hope not Hate. Archived from the original on 8 August 2020. Retrieved 18 August 2020. https://www.hopenothate.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/BitChute-Report_2020-07-v2.pdf
Doward, Jamie; Townsend, Mark (28 June 2020). "The UK social media platform where neo-Nazis can view terror atrocities". The Guardian. ISSN 0029-7712. Archived from the original on 13 August 2020. Retrieved 14 August 2020. https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2020/jun/28/the-uk-social-media-platform-where-neo-nazis-can-view-terror-atrocities
Zonshine, Idan (15 June 2020). "New UK report exposes massive online network of far-right antisemitism". The Jerusalem Post. Archived from the original on 18 August 2020. Retrieved 19 August 2020. https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/antisemitism/new-uk-report-exposes-massive-online-network-of-far-right-antisemitism-631491
Trujillo, Milo; Gruppi, Maurício; Buntain, Cody; Horne, Benjamin D. (13 July 2020). "What is BitChute?: Characterizing the". Proceedings of the 31st ACM Conference on Hypertext and Social Media. Association for Computing Machinery. pp. 139–140. arXiv:2004.01984. doi:10.1145/3372923.3404833. ISBN 9781450370981. S2CID 220434725. 9781450370981
Siapera, Eugenia (24 July 2023). "Alt Tech and the public sphere: Exploring Bitchute as a political media infrastructure". European Journal of Communication. 38 (5): 446–465. doi:10.1177/02673231231189041. ISSN 0267-3231. In addition, the platform hosts more extreme content, including overtly misogynist, racist and supremacist channels. For example, the antisemitic and neo-Nazi film Europa – the Last Battle (2017), a 10-h film which is banned from YouTube, is found across several Bitchute channels. https://doi.org/10.1177%2F02673231231189041
Blake, Andrew (14 November 2018). "BitChute, YouTube alternative, cries foul over apparent punt from PayPal". The Washington Times. Archived from the original on 27 November 2018. Retrieved 28 November 2018. https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2018/nov/14/bitchute-youtube-alternative-cries-foul-over-appar/
Davis, Gregory (20 July 2020). "Bitchute: Platforming Hate and Terror in the UK" (PDF). Hope not Hate. Archived from the original on 8 August 2020. Retrieved 18 August 2020. https://www.hopenothate.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/BitChute-Report_2020-07-v2.pdf
Andrews, Frank; Pym, Ambrose (24 February 2021). "The Websites Sustaining Britain's Far-Right Influencers". Bellingcat. Archived from the original on 24 February 2021. Retrieved 25 February 2021. https://www.bellingcat.com/news/uk-and-europe/2021/02/24/the-websites-sustaining-britains-far-right-influencers/
Livni, Ephrat (12 May 2019). "Twitter, Facebook, and Insta bans send the alt-right to Gab and Telegram". Quartz. Archived from the original on 24 May 2019. Retrieved 24 May 2019. The far right have plenty of places to go when they are no longer welcome on mainstream platforms—like Parler, Minds, MeWe, and BitChute, among others. https://qz.com/1617824/twitter-facebook-bans-send-alt-right-to-gab-and-telegram/
Freelon, Deen; Marwick, Alice; Kreiss, Daniel (4 September 2020). "False equivalencies: Online activism from left to right". Science. 369 (6508): 1197–1201. Bibcode:2020Sci...369.1197F. doi:10.1126/science.abb2428. ISSN 0036-8075. PMID 32883863. S2CID 221471947. /wiki/Science_(journal)
Freelon, Deen; Marwick, Alice; Kreiss, Daniel (4 September 2020). "False equivalencies: Online activism from left to right". Science. 369 (6508): 1197–1201. Bibcode:2020Sci...369.1197F. doi:10.1126/science.abb2428. ISSN 0036-8075. PMID 32883863. S2CID 221471947. /wiki/Science_(journal)
Andrews, Frank; Pym, Ambrose (24 February 2021). "The Websites Sustaining Britain's Far-Right Influencers". Bellingcat. Archived from the original on 24 February 2021. Retrieved 25 February 2021. https://www.bellingcat.com/news/uk-and-europe/2021/02/24/the-websites-sustaining-britains-far-right-influencers/
Daro, Ishmael N.; Lytvynenko, Jane (18 April 2018). "Right-Wing YouTubers Think It's Only A Matter Of Time Before They Get Kicked Off The Site". BuzzFeed News. Archived from the original on 5 July 2018. Retrieved 4 May 2019. https://www.buzzfeed.com/ishmaeldaro/right-wing-youtube-alternative-platforms
Schroeder, Audra (2 November 2018). "Far-right conspiracy vloggers have a new home". The Daily Dot. Archived from the original on 4 May 2019. Retrieved 4 May 2019. https://www.dailydot.com/upstream/bitchute/
Trujillo, Milo; Gruppi, Maurício; Buntain, Cody; Horne, Benjamin D. (13 July 2020). "What is BitChute?: Characterizing the". Proceedings of the 31st ACM Conference on Hypertext and Social Media. Association for Computing Machinery. pp. 139–140. arXiv:2004.01984. doi:10.1145/3372923.3404833. ISBN 9781450370981. S2CID 220434725. 9781450370981
Daro, Ishmael N.; Lytvynenko, Jane (18 April 2018). "Right-Wing YouTubers Think It's Only A Matter Of Time Before They Get Kicked Off The Site". BuzzFeed News. Archived from the original on 5 July 2018. Retrieved 4 May 2019. https://www.buzzfeed.com/ishmaeldaro/right-wing-youtube-alternative-platforms
Tani, Maxwell (22 September 2017). "'There's no one for right-wingers to pick a fight with': The far right is struggling to sustain interest in its social media platforms". Business Insider. Archived from the original on 8 December 2017. Retrieved 10 December 2017. https://www.businessinsider.com/far-right-tech-platforms-gab-youtube-bitchute-2017-9?r=US&IR=T
Alexander, Julia (7 March 2018). "Controversial YouTubers head to alternative platforms in wake of 'purge'". Polygon. Archived from the original on 4 May 2019. Retrieved 4 May 2019. https://www.polygon.com/2018/3/7/17087668/steemit-dtube-bitchute-youtube-purge
Dearden, Lizzie (22 July 2020). "Inside the UK-based site that has become the far right's YouTube". The Independent. Archived from the original on 5 August 2020. Retrieved 14 August 2020. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/bitchute-far-right-youtube-neo-nazi-terrorism-videos-a9632981.html
Lytvynenko, Jane (1 June 2020). "After The "Plandemic" Video Went Viral In The US, It Was Exported To The Rest Of The World". BuzzFeed News. Archived from the original on 7 August 2020. Retrieved 19 August 2020. https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/janelytvynenko/coronavirus-plandemic-translation
Bellemare, Andrea; Nicholson, Katie; Ho, Jason (21 May 2020). "How a debunked COVID-19 video kept spreading after Facebook and YouTube took it down". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 20 August 2020. Retrieved 19 August 2020. https://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/alt-tech-platforms-resurface-plandemic-1.5577013
Davis, Gregory (20 July 2020). "Bitchute: Platforming Hate and Terror in the UK" (PDF). Hope not Hate. Archived from the original on 8 August 2020. Retrieved 18 August 2020. https://www.hopenothate.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/BitChute-Report_2020-07-v2.pdf
Alexander, Julia (7 March 2018). "Controversial YouTubers head to alternative platforms in wake of 'purge'". Polygon. Archived from the original on 4 May 2019. Retrieved 4 May 2019. https://www.polygon.com/2018/3/7/17087668/steemit-dtube-bitchute-youtube-purge
Maxwell, Andy (29 January 2017). "BitChute is a BitTorrent-Powered YouTube Alternative". TorrentFreak. Archived from the original on 9 December 2017. Retrieved 10 December 2017. https://torrentfreak.com/bitchute-is-a-bittorrent-powered-youtube-alternative-170129/
Andrews, Frank; Pym, Ambrose (24 February 2021). "The Websites Sustaining Britain's Far-Right Influencers". Bellingcat. Archived from the original on 24 February 2021. Retrieved 25 February 2021. https://www.bellingcat.com/news/uk-and-europe/2021/02/24/the-websites-sustaining-britains-far-right-influencers/
Maxwell, Andy (29 January 2017). "BitChute is a BitTorrent-Powered YouTube Alternative". TorrentFreak. Archived from the original on 9 December 2017. Retrieved 10 December 2017. https://torrentfreak.com/bitchute-is-a-bittorrent-powered-youtube-alternative-170129/
Brennan, Fredrick (27 November 2019). "Bitchute claims to be a decentralized platform—that's not true". The Daily Dot. Archived from the original on 28 November 2019. Retrieved 28 November 2019. /wiki/Fredrick_Brennan
Brennan, Fredrick (27 November 2019). "Bitchute claims to be a decentralized platform—that's not true". The Daily Dot. Archived from the original on 28 November 2019. Retrieved 28 November 2019. /wiki/Fredrick_Brennan
Chant, Tim De (29 April 2021). "Conspiracy theorist said death threats were "jokes"—but jury didn't buy it". Ars Technica. Archived from the original on 29 April 2021. Retrieved 18 May 2021. https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2021/04/conspiracy-theorist-said-death-threats-were-jokes-but-jury-didnt-buy-it/