Earlier this week, Tumblr announced its decision to ban explicit adult content from its site beginning on Dec. 17. But when you use algorithms and AI to filter content, instead of human moderators, the results are likely going to miss the mark.
As Uproxx points out, the platform is now flagging some totally innocuous posts for being too sexy. That includes images of Garfield, fruit, Mr. Rogers, and lot more. Censoring pornographic content is one thing (with its own troubling implications), but blindly deleting half of the platform because a computer can’t tell the difference between Mario’s cartoon nipples and boobs is another.
Users are going on Twitter to share some of the very ridiculous things that will be banned from Tumblr according to its new policy. For sports fans, this include a photo of Alex Ovechkin hugging the Stanley Cup.
ICYMI, the new policy bans all photos, videos and GIFs of human genitalia. Photos showing nipples of female-presenting people will not be allowed (nice!). The platform makes exception for photos depicting political protests, classical statues, breast-feeding, and after-birth. Most text posts are still fine. This decision serves a huge blow to a giant online community, and will have lasting effect we can't predict.
But don't worry kids, the Nazis are safe.
The move comes after the Tumblr app was removed from the Apple Store due to explicit child pornography flagged on the site. The content has since been removed, but the new policy still stands.
Here’s more of the weird, but totally innocent stuff you may no longer be able to see on Tumblr. In other news, the internet is dying.
