CYBERSPACE — While the adult community on Twitter continues focusing on specific items in Twitter’s latest revision to their Terms of Service (TOS) concerning what the company calls “sensitive material,” a careful reading of the new policy unveiled in March 2019 reveals a deliberate ramping up of porn censorship across the platform.
The section concerning sexual content is called “Sensitive Media Policy.” We have edited out with […] most of the sections concerning violent and hateful content, which Twitter for some reason consistently lumps with “adult content” (i.e. sexual content of any kind, policed entirely at their discretion).
This edited version of the Twitter TOS highlights what appears to be the real goal of the new policy, unveiled without much fanfare four months ago — laying the groundwork to entirely banish the vast majority of sexual content and expression from the platform.
Here is Twitter’s “Sensitive Media Policy” in black and white:
- “You may not […] share […] adult content within live video or in profile or header images.”
- “Media depicting sexual violence and/or assault is also not permitted.”
- “[Y]ou can’t include […] adult content within areas that are highly visible on Twitter, including in live video, profile or header images. If you share this content within Tweets, you need to mark your account as sensitive. Doing so places images and videos behind an interstitial (or warning message), that needs to be acknowledged before your media can be viewed. Using this feature means that people who don’t want to see sensitive media can avoid it, or make an informed decision before they choose to view it.”
- “There are […] some types of sensitive media content that we don’t allow at all. […] We group sensitive media content into the following categories:
- Graphic violence — […] Some examples include, but are not limited to, depictions of: […] bodily fluids including blood, feces, semen etc. Note: exceptions may be made for documentary or educational content.
- Adult content — Adult content is any consensually produced and distributed media that is pornographic or intended to cause sexual arousal. Some examples include, but are not limited to, depictions of: full or partial nudity, including close-ups of genitals, buttocks, or breasts (excluding content related to breastfeeding); simulated sexual acts; and sexual intercourse or other sexual acts — this also applies to cartoons, hentai, or anime involving humans or depictions of animals with human-like features. Note: exceptions may be made for artistic, medical, health, or educational content."
- Violent sexual conduct and gratuitous gore — Violent sexual conduct is any media that depicts violence, whether real or simulated, in association with sexual acts. Some examples include, but are not limited to, depictions of: rape and other forms of violent sexual assault, or sexual acts that occur without the consent of participants, including a simulated lack of consent; and sexualized violence — inflicting physical harm on an individual within an intimate setting, where it is not immediately obvious if those involved have consented to take part."
- Gratuitous gore is any media that depicts […] violent content that is shared for sadistic purposes.
you can’t include […] adult content […] within live video, profile, or header images.". We prohibit violent sexual conduct to prevent the normalization of sexual assault and non-consensual violence associated with sexual acts. […] you can’t share images or videos that depict violent sexual conduct on Twitter. Note: very limited exceptions may be made for gory media associated with newsworthy events."
- "You can share graphic violence and consensually produced adult content within your Tweets, provided that you mark this media as sensitive."
- "We may also allow limited sharing of hateful imagery, provided that it is not used to promote a terrorist or violent extremist group, that you mark this content as sensitive and don’t target it at an individual (via mentioning someone or including an identifiable individual within such images)."
- "If you don’t mark your media as sensitive, we will do so manually if your content is reported for review."
- "The enforcement action we take depends on the type of media you have shared, and where you have shared it:
- Adult content: Live video and profile images — the first time you violate this policy, we will require you to remove this content. We will also temporarily lock you out of your account before you can Tweet again. If you violate this policy again after your first warning, your account will be permanently suspended. Sending someone unsolicited […] adult content — if you target someone with sensitive media in a clearly abusive or unsolicited way, we’ll require you to remove it under our abusive behavior policy. Accounts dedicated to posting sensitive media — your account may be permanently suspended if the majority of your activity on Twitter is sharing sensitive media.
- Violent sexual conduct: If you share media that depicts violent sexual conduct […] anywhere on Twitter, we will require you to remove this content. If your account is dedicated to posting this type of content, your account will be immediately permanently suspended."
There it is: this is the groundwork for the full censoring of sexual material from the one massive platform where sex workers build community around their activities, educate and protect each other, and express themselves and their sexualities in an open, frank manner.
We could analyze this fully, but Twitter’s blatant attempt at stigmatizing the expression of human sexuality doesn't need much glossing.
This is a shameful policy by an unaccountable company that has decided that "we may also allow limited sharing of hateful imagery," but "any consensually produced and distributed media that is pornographic or intended to cause sexual arousal" is always objectionable.
Also, there's this chilling warning:
"Accounts dedicated to posting sensitive media [including all "adult content"] — your account may be permanently suspended if the majority of your activity on Twitter is sharing sensitive media," which puts all sex workers, adult companies and even sex educators on notice.
Check it out for yourself here.
Just one reflection: throughout the Twitter Terms of Service, “adult content” is consistently sandwiched between “violent” and “hateful” content.
Where is the love, Twitter?
[Update, 7/3/2019, 10:20 a.m.: Ralf Kappe and the Sharesome team have dug up the old Twitter TOS, before the new, explicitly anti-porn version was quietly unveiled in March. It confirms that a major change of policy regarding adult content took place at Twitter HQ. Read the pre-March TOS here.]
