"In an announcement that was sent out to bloggers who use the company's blogging website, Google said people will no longer be able to "publicly share images and video that are sexually explicit or show graphic nudity" on Blogger as of March 23. Google said those Blogger sites that continue to host pornography after March 23 will be made "private." That means the content will be allowed to remain up, but it will only be accessible to the site's owner and the people who the user directly shared the blog with.
Google noted that it isn't completely banning nudity from being shown publicly on Blogger. The site will allow nudity "if the content offers a substantial public benefit, for example in artistic, educational, documentary, or scientific contexts." But it also puts Google in the position of deciding what is art and what is pornography -- a decision that Instagram and other sites have struggled with. Blogger previously allowed adult content on its sites, but it required users to mark their blogs as "adult." Those Blogger sites came with an "adult content" warning that would appear before a visitor could enter the site."---
Read more about this wide-reaching censorship by Google here: ZDNet: Google bans 'explicit' adult content from Blogger blogs (Link tipped by Tomais Ashdene)
In the last months we have also seen how Blogger/Google in a very disturbing way has forced an adult rating on some of the blogs that do not carry adult rated material or nudity, for example my dear friend Eddi Haskell's blog "Eddi & Ryce's Second Life".
I am starting to think it is best to move the blog to another blog provider and to stop using my Google Crome browser, my Gmail and my Google+ accounts altogether. I should have seen this coming earlier...
Tomorrow I am going to start checking on my alternatives concerning blog, browser and web-mail.
Keep me informed on what you find. I got a e-mail grom Blooger on this yesterday.
ReplyDeleteI will blog about it for sure buddy! I am so sorry to hear you are having troubles with Google too. They haven't sent anything to me yet, but who knows...
DeleteBloggr blogs are exportable. So you can go where ever you want. Done that on a few occasions.
ReplyDeleteThanks Anna, I will ask your advice if I run into any problems ;)
DeleteThis is a shocker, but is not unexpected. Google is now a monolith and has the power to do these sorts of things. They also do not see Blogger as important to their future business.
ReplyDeleteHere is what I am doing in preparation.
I am assuming the Ryce Skytower's blog,which I set up specifically for adult content, is going to come down on March 23. I have published almost 1,000 posts in 5 years and there is no way I will go through and pull down all nude images. However, this is not my main concern.
My main blog,eddihaskell.com, may also be affected since Google has sent me a email telling me that they may be taking this down also.I cannot figure out why -- except for the occasional avatar backside, which you can see in non-adult rated blogs, I do not feature sexual content. Google suggested I go through over 5,000 posts and take down any content that could be construed as mature.
Needless to say I am not willing to do this. I will move somewhere else.
Here are my recommendations for all Blogger users:
First, all Blogger users need to save an up-to-date version of their blog on their hard drive. Google said that they will make all non complaint blogs "private" but you need to save a copy anyway.
Go to settings, other, blog tools, and export a copy of your blog to your hard drive.
If you do not have 5,000 posts like I do you can try to remove non-compliant content. But for now at least keep a copy of your blog,.
Well...it's a good thing I took down my google blog ages ago and stick with wordpress :)
ReplyDeleteI have some additional bad news.
ReplyDeleteThere are two reports that any blogs with overt LGBT content will be taken down by Google.
You can read about this here:
http://googlebloggerclosesgayblogs.blogspot.com/
Ziff Davis says the same thing:
Currently, Blogger blogs marked as "adult" include LGBT and "outsider sexuality" diaries, erotic writers, transgender activists, romance book editors and reviewers, sex toy reviewers, art nude photographers, film-makers, artists such as painters and comic illustrators, text-only fiction writers, sex news and porn gossip writers, LGBT sex activism, sex education and information outlets, fetish fashion, feminist porn blogs, and much, much more.
This explains why eddihaskell.com has been targeted -- because I am public my LGBT status and blog focus.
It could be that people in places like Saudi Arabia who simply object to public LGBT content are complaining about it and Google is complying.
This is truly disgusting if this is true.
Yes, I received he email notification as well and you will not find any questionable content on my blog. I think we need to not rush to conclusions here. The emails were probably sent to everyone and not specifically to those in question. However, if you do want to move your content, then export and move by all means.
ReplyDeleteThe email was sent to anyone with an adult rating, and under threat of having your blog removed by March 23. I do not think it was sent to everyone, just the people who have an adult rating . The question is this - is merely having LGBT content making you subject to discrimination? According to several reports out there, and they blog I mention, it is. I hope they are wrong.
ReplyDelete