diff --git a/sources/youtubeVideo.go b/sources/youtubeVideo.go
index fd85bf1..b7cf793 100644
--- a/sources/youtubeVideo.go
+++ b/sources/youtubeVideo.go
@@ -90,7 +90,9 @@ var youtubeCategories = map[string]string{
 }
 
 func NewYoutubeVideo(directory string, videoData *ytdl.YtdlVideo, playlistPosition int64, awsConfig aws.Config, stopGroup *stop.Group, pool *ip_manager.IPPool) (*YoutubeVideo, error) {
-	publishedAt, err := time.Parse("20060102", videoData.UploadDate)
+	// youtube-dl returns times in local timezone sometimes. this could break in the future
+	// maybe we can file a PR to choose the timezone we want from youtube-dl
+	publishedAt, err := time.ParseInLocation("20060102", videoData.UploadDate, time.Local)
 	if err != nil {
 		return nil, errors.Err(err)
 	}