IE 11 is not supported. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser.

Obama in YouTube interview: Youth and free Internet will lead the way

Three of YouTube's most popular show creators set up in the White House on Thursday for a live streaming interview with President Obama, with topics ranging from Cuba to gay marriage to, in a hilarious slip, the president's "first wife."Up first was Hank Green, who runs an educational channel with several million subscribers:Is this administration going to be remembered as overusing drones? "Dron
presidential selfie
Hank Green, Glozell Green, Bethany Mota and President Obama share a selfie moment.Today

Three of YouTube's most popular show creators set up in the White House on Thursday for a live streaming interview with President Obama, with topics ranging from Cuba to gay marriage to, in a hilarious slip, the president's "first wife."

youtubers interview obama
Today

Up first was Hank Green, who runs an educational channel with several million subscribers:

Is this administration going to be remembered as overusing drones? "Drone tech came into its own right when I came into office. We've tried to put a series of constraints on how it's used. Any kind of war is damaging, any kind of war results in casualties — the type of damage that takes place with drone strikes is always significantly less than if I'd ordered a raid into a village where a terrorist was."

Is putting sanctions on North Korea really the best we can do? "The kind of authoritarianism that exists there, you almost can't duplicate anywhere else. The answer is not going to be a military solution. It is very hard to sustain that kind of brutal authoritarian regime in this modern world, information ends up seeping in over time and bringing about change."

Next came Glozell Green, whose comedic antics entertain some 3 million followers:

How do you justify dealing with dictators like the Castros? "We've had the same policy since I was born. When you do something over and over again for 50 years and it doesn't work, it's time to try something new. You start getting telecommunications into Cuba, you start getting the Internet into Cuba, people's minds begin to change... the goal, ultimately, is to make sure there's freedom in Cuba, not just for the folks who've left."

What are you doing to push along gay marriage nationwide? "I'm hopeful the Supreme Court will come to the right decision. For me personally, just to see all the loving gay and lesbian couples that I know who are great parents and great partners, the idea that we would not treat them like the brothers and sisters that they are, that doesn't make any sense to me."

As a parting gift, Glozell presented Obama with some bright green lipstick like her own, "for your first wife."

"My first wife," Obama responded, "do you know something I don't?"

Glozell
Glozell, mortified by her \"first wife\" remark.Today

After a little more good-natured ribbing, he moved on to Bethany Mota, a 19-year-old lifestyle blogger with a massive 10 million subscribers and her own fashion line.

How can the government help combat cyberbullying? "This is one area where I think your voice is more powerful than the president of the United States. Because peers are going to have more influence than anybody. And when they see young people like you who are willing to speak out and say that's not right and protect other people form that kind of bullying... that's what changes people's minds."

How can we make China a part of the uncensored Internet community? "We obviously can't make laws in China. But what we can do is let them know and shine a spotlight on some of those practices, indicate to them that any government that is afraid of its own people, people just peacefully trying to speak out and voice their opinions, is, over the long term, not going to be as effective and long-lasting as a government that trusts its people to be able to communicate freely."

This was followed by a "lightning round" in which we learned what the president likes to watch on TV (sports), what he wanted to be growing up (an architect), and what superpower he would most like:

"My wife Michelle teased me, she thought this was really nerdy, but I'll go ahead and tell you. I would love to be able to speak any language, anybody I met anywhere in the world I could just talk their language. Wouldn't that be cool?"

And lastly (how could they resist) — a presidential selfie.

presidential selfie
Hank Green, Glozell Green, Bethany Mota and President Obama share a selfie moment.Today

You can watch the full hour-long show on YouTube.