OnlyFans Reverses Ban on Sexually Explicit Content
Decision follows a wave of backlash from queer sex workers
BY TAT BELLAMY-WALKER
OnlyFans has reversed
its recently-announced
policy banning sexually
explicit content on
the site following a wave of backlash
from sex workers — including
LGBTQ sex workers — decrying
the decision.
“We have secured assurances
necessary to support our diverse
creator community and have suspended
the planned October 1 policy
change,” the company said in
an August 25 statement. “Thank
you to everyone for making your
voices heard,” the company tweeted.
“OnlyFans stands for inclusion,
and we will continue to provide a
home for all creators.”
The company’s response comes
days after announcing that they
are barring users from posting
pornographic content amid growing
OnlyFans has scrapped its upcoming policy that would have banned sexually-explicit content.
pressure from fi nancial investors.
This decision sparked a wave
of outcry on social media from sex
workers who rely on the site as a
key source of income.
Before reinstating the policy, the
company told Bloomberg that this
REUTERS/ANDREW KELLY
move to ban explicit content would
support “the long-term sustainability
of our platform, and continue
to host an inclusive community
of creators and fans, we must
evolve our content guidelines.” According
to OnlyFans, the company
ONLINE
would still allow users to post nude
content “as long as it is consistent
with our Acceptable Use Policy.”
OnlyFans CEO Tim Stokely had
pinned the controversial decision
on major banking institutions,
which threatened to cut fi nancial
support.
“JPMorgan Chase is particularly
aggressive in closing accounts of
sex workers or…any business that
supports sex workers,” he said
in an interview with the Financial
Times,
A pattern of restrictions on content
surrounding sex workers has
emerged in recent years in the
wake of federal legislation known
as SESTA/FOSTA, which put more
responsibility on platforms for the
content on their sites. Other sites,
including Tumblr, came under fi re
for a similar ban on all “adult content,”
but has since decided to uphold
its policy.
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