Tumblr’s adult content ban will absolutely hurt fandoms and underrepresented communities

Tumblr plans to ban adult content, and the impacts will be harmful to marginalized communities who used the platform to connect and find community.

When Yahoo! bought Tumblr in 2013, many users were worried that things were going to change and that content would be censored. Recently, Tumblr users noticed they could not search for adult content through searches, and, then, yesterday, the website announced that it would be getting rid of all NSFW images and videos on the site.

A statement from Tumblr explains their reasons for this purge, titling the post “A better, more positive Tumblr.”

"Over the past several months, and inspired by our storied past, we’ve given serious thought to who we want to be to our community moving forward and have been hard at work laying the foundation for a better Tumblr. We’ve realized that in order to continue to fulfill our promise and place in culture, especially as it evolves, we must change. Some of that change began with fostering more constructive dialogue among our community members. Today, we’re taking another step by no longer allowing adult content, including explicit sexual content and nudity (with some exceptions)."

You can read the entire post from Tumblr about the changes they are making here.

Despite claiming these changes will make Tumblr more positive and welcoming, several communities have expressed this is not the case. Already, many sex workers and artists on the platform are discovering that their ability to use Tumblr to connect to their audience or make money has been negatively impacted.

As explained in Tumblr’s post about the decision, NSFW content is being flagged by bots. As you can probably guess, this isn’t going too well so far. Lots of content that is in no way adult or pornographic is being flagged as inappropriate.

For those outside of these groups, it may not seem like a big deal that Tumblr has made this decision. It’s important to note just how many people use the platform. Tumblr has been a site that many fandoms have flocked to and found a home. It’s also a place where you can find communities and blogs tailored to the needs of marginalized groups, especially queer people.

This widespread ban doesn’t just get rid of porn bots, it also makes it so that NSFW fanart and other fan content can’t be posted. Many queer people face a lot of harassment on other major social media platforms, and most large adult content or pornographic sites are created for a straight male audience. This ban makes it difficult for marginalized people to enjoy adult content that they are comfortable with, and find a platform that welcomes them instead of makes them feel lesser than.

Many people are also upset about Tumblr’s announcement that they will be censoring what they call “female-presenting nipples,” but not male ones.

Tumblr has had problems for years with porn bots, and sure, there is content that should be monitored or taken down. But instead of surveying the situation and managing content, it looks as if Tumblr has made the decision to kill their website for good.

This decision will likely continue to harm people who have used the platform as a way to network and connect. Having safe spaces and communities where marginalized people can find each other and create their own support system and allies is absolutely needed.

Due to these abrupt changes by Tumblr, many users are already looking for a new platform where they hope to be appreciated.