Adult content to be banned on the service

Dec 4, 2018 08:38 GMT  ·  By

Tumblr has decided to switch to a rather radical approach regarding adult content, after the company’s official iOS application was removed by Apple from the App Store for violating the guidelines.

Beginning December 17, Tumblr would no longer allow explicit posts on the service, and the company will switch all existing content to private mode. This means users would no longer be able to share photos and videos, and Tumblr says it’s planning further methods to censor infringing media.

Jeff D’Onofrio, CEO of Tumblr, says all blog owners will be notified in the coming weeks about the approaching deadline, so they can prepare for the change. Users are allowed to export their content if it’s impacted by the new guidelines, and Tumblr says it’ll rely on automated tools for the filtering, but also on human power to identify adult posts.

“We know there will be mistakes, but we’ve done our best to create and enforce a policy that acknowledges the breadth of expression we see in the community,” D’Onofrio said.

Users allowed to appeal the bans

Tumblr, which has more or less become a very popular community for sharing adult material, says it’s aiming for a clean future, and users can very well switch to websites that are specifically focused on such content.

“There are no shortage of sites on the internet that feature adult content. We will leave it to them and focus our efforts on creating the most welcoming environment possible for our community,” the CEO says.

Some adult posts will continue to be allowed, such as material that is related to breastfeeding, Tumblr explains in an updated FAQ page.

“Written content such as erotica, nudity related to political or newsworthy speech, and nudity found in art, such as sculptures and illustrations, are also stuff that can be freely posted on Tumblr,” the page reads.

Blog owners who believe their posts were incorrectly flagged as adult content can appeal the decision and have the restriction double-checked by company engineers.