They are not avoidable
They really aren't. If you delete them and tell the algorithm you don't want more things like them they'll just show you other things instead to see what you will respond to.
I was listening to someone yesterday who was saying that the controversy and click bait are all part of the way these sites are set up to put you in echo chambers and keep feeding you what you'll respond to so they can basically advertise and make money. It also makes you feel like everybody is having the same experience as you.
Shorts also serve to reduce the human agency to make a choice. People swipe through and get whatever comes next. I have never seen someone use the search function to find a short. Even, to show someone an old one, they'll swipe endlessly in the hope tht the slot machine of algo-induced-chance will show them what they want to see, instead of going off to try and find it.
I wouldn't even know how to search for a short. I find it rather unnerving how even hubby and my dad seem to have become addicted to scrolling through them on Facebook or YouTube. Not sure which, but they have them up on the TV when my dad is visiting. My dad can't even watch a full movie without losing interest part way through now.
I put a friend of mine through 2001: A Space Odyssey for the first time. They managed to get through it without any shorts. I'm grateful for that :)
I long to block the short or reel functionality at a network level. It is probably possible... maybe there's a short on how to do that somewhere...
🤣 A short for everything