In 2007, Tumblr launched a community by offering users a space for personal expression. Users could remain as anonymous as they wished. They could really post whatever they wanted, whether it was cute dog gifs, blog posts to express their opinions, or adult content to understand their ever-changing sexuality. However, after an unfortunate bug in their AI system failed to find an instance of child pornography, Tumblr decided to change direction. As of December 17, 2018, Tumblr no longer allows users to post adult content. These new changes can provide users with a safer platform. On the other hand, the changes also go against the company's original mission. A simple solution would be to allow users to opt out of sensitive content, but it's clear that Tumblr views censorship as a much bigger problem than that. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get the original essay In mid-November last year, Tumblr disappeared from the iOS App Store. Shortly after releasing a statement declaring that "while every image uploaded to the platform is "analyzed against an industry database of child sexual abuse material" to filter out explicit images, an "audit of routine "discovered content that was missing from the database, allowing it to pass through the filter." Given Apple's guidelines, Tumblr was not up to their standards and had to be removed immediately. However, the app remained live on Google Play for Android users. The company quickly stated that its priority was to get the app back on the iOS App Store. Tumblr has decided to completely ban NSFW (not safe for work) content. This includes any content depicting “real human genitalia or female nipples” as well as any media involving sexual acts, including illustrations. For example, if a mother posts a photo of herself breastfeeding her newborn, this will be allowed as long as her nipple is not visible. This begs the question: are the 30+ million users happy with it? Is this an overall positive decision? The decision sparked a huge amount of backlash from users who see the platform as a way to express their sexuality. These users will abandon the site and are among the more than 423,000 users who have signed the change.org petition to have Tumblr reverse its ban on adult content. In response to critics asking, “why are you doing this?” Jeff D'Onfrio, CEO of Tumblr, says that to foster a deep sense of community, they must take responsibility and consider the impact of their platform on different age groups, demographics, cultures and mindsets. He adds: “There is no shortage of websites that offer adult content.” It equates a social media site to a pornographic website. Tumblr has always prided itself on its reposting tool, allowing content producers to retain ownership of their photos and not worry about copyright or trademark infringement. This fostered a community eager to share intimate moments. Next, they have a powerful reporting system. Users can report harassment, privacy violations, and more with the click of a button. They value this type of feedback and have proven to respond accordingly. Finally, they committed to prohibitingany “images, videos, or GIFs showing actual human genitalia” or “female nipples.” This will also be applied retroactively, with users asked to remove posts that violate the policy changes. The official statement emphasizes that these changes will allow more people to feel comfortable expressing themselves, without pornographic images appearing when they browse their feed. The Verizon-owned company believes that this form of censorship equates to a safer platform. Although it may be "safer" for a larger audience, Tumblr has faced backlash from the gay community who feel that the type of adult content posted by Tumblr creators is not totally appropriate. like you would imagine seeing a full-fledged pornographic website. The Washington Post interviewed a man from Atlanta named Mutabear. This is his story. He's 27 now, so you can imagine that when he discovered his homosexuality, it wasn't as socially accepted as it is today. He goes on to say, "It was a safe space for me to explore things online that I wouldn't necessarily want to try [in] real life, where it might not be realistically safe." Most importantly, it was a way for me to connect with other like-minded people.” The erotic blog posts and visual gay erotica, along with the online community of accepting and like-minded people, helped Mutabear find his true self. Its subscribers consisted mainly of gay men between the ages of 18 and 25. Mutabear received dozens of direct messages about what he posted, which created positive dialogue and advice, allowing young men to explore their identities and sexuality anonymously. Not feeling alone during a vulnerable time in their lives is priceless, and Tumblr offered these users peace of mind. It seems that by making Tumblr safer, it also shook up the community that felt most welcome. Finding child pornography on their “safe space” platform is no laughing matter. Tumblr executives made some quick and seemingly calculated decisions after the iOS App Store story broke. The decisions were made in hopes of creating a better platform. The company has been transparent about the bugs in its system and the steps, which in this case include policy changes, it is taking to improve. Unfortunately, these changes come at the expense of young men and women who use their anonymity to express themselves; to understand who they are now and who they want to be in the future. There are pros and cons to each side. TechCrunch reported in 2017 the release of a new feature called "safe mode" that allowed users to enable censorship of sensitive content. This put power in the hands of users rather than company executives. An article from The Verge provides an excellent take on the culture we live in today. We live in “a culture that positions pornography as a “public health crisis,” that views censorship of sex as preferable to acknowledging its existence, that views nudity as totally incompatible with the daily lives of human beings, will be the only thing we will have. to blame". Keep in mind: This is just a sample. Get a personalized article now from our expert writers. Get a personalized essay. Everyone's Tumblr is curated according to their tastes, like the way we have 2018,/