Following the ever-increasing trend of The Man censoring literally everything on the internet, back in December Tumblr cracked down on adult content. Known as one of the more liberal platforms when it comes to porn, it’s unsurprising that the latest statistics show users are leaving the site in droves.
According to analytics site SimilarWeb, visits to Tumblr fell from 521 million in December to 369 million in February, following the roll out of its new – default – Safe Mode setting. The feature hides ‘sensitive’ images, including “real-life human genitals or female-presenting nipples” – basically anything supposedly NSFW (men’s nipples, as always, are fine).
The ban immediately received backlash when it was announced in December, with one petition amassing over 600,000 signatures. Users claimed the Safe Mode filter not only censored adult content, but flagged non-explicit art and LGBT content that didn’t contain anything sexual.
Adult content creators also widely criticised the move, asserting that Tumblr was silencing the people who use the site the most. “I understand wanting to make Tumblr a safer environment for younger audiences,” freelance artist and adult comic-maker Kayla-Na told Dazed last month, “but Tumblr has to remember that the adult community is still part of the website as a whole, and shouldn’t be suppressed into oblivion.”
Given its literal tag line is “Tumblr is a place to express yourself”, you have to laugh at the platform’s catastrophic self-destruction. In 2019 you would think social media platforms would be more progressive about sex and nudity, particularly ones that actually thrived because of NSFW content. If these new statistics are anything to go by, it seems inevitable the platform is heading towards its demise.