Tumblr,
Earlier today we announced to the press that we are running a beta test program for Post+, Tumblrâs newest add-on subscription tool. Post+ is a completely optional tool that will allow creators to make some of their posts exclusive to their paid subscribers. You can read more about it right over here on our @postplus Tumblr. This feature is being tested by a small group of incredible creators on Tumblr.
We want to hear about what you like, what you love, and what concerns you. Even if itâs not very nice. Tell us. We can take it. We WANT that feedback. It helps us make Tumblr better.
What we wonât ever accept is the targeted harassment and threats these creators have endured since this afternoon. These creators are some of the most talented people around, and all theyâre doing is testing out a feature. These are the people who graciously agreed to pilot a program to help us discover bugs before we open it up to all creators. These are the humans who are testing a feature that we hope will soon help thousands of Tumblr creators feel empowered, get rewarded for their efforts, and find support within their community.
Our Community Guidelines are clear: Donât engage in targeted abuse, bullying, or harassment.
Anyone in violation of these guidelines will be dealt with swiftly and will be forced to contend with the appropriate consequences. Itâs okay to tell us how you feel. Itâs not okay to bully someone because you disagree with their choices.
@staffâââ itâs great to hear that you âwonât ever accept targeted harassment and threatsâ!
now: can you tell me what that looks like? genuinely, please, can you tell me what the fuck youâre going to do to put a stop to it?
because letâs be clear: the creators beta testing this (extremely poorly-thought-out) feature, which is *going* to result in enough lawsuits to possibly actually shut tumblr down for good, are not fair game for criticism here. like: the whole point, the whole appeal of tumblr is that everyone here is in the same boat. weâre all poor as dirt, probably mentally ill, neurodivergent, queer, and/or disabled; the preferred term for a tumblr user is âdumpster-diving shrieking opossum.â
the people who were targeted for beta testing are not jeff bezos. theyâre your local cashier and sales clerk just trying to survive. the backlash theyâve received is unwarranted, inappropriate, misdirected and cruel. @kaijunoââ has received hundreds of death threats in one fucking day, and thatâs not okay.
so, @staffâââ, what are you going to do to stop it?
because it doesnât seem like youâve done a thing to protect kaijuno, or any of your âpost+â beta testers. users whoâve been suckered into this crapshoot are taking the fall for your tone-deaf decision making, so what are you going to do to compensate them? you want to talk about emotional damages, maybe thereâs a place to have that conversation when the reason theyâre being targeted, on your platform, is because of you.
and while weâre here, letâs talk about one other section of the community guidelines youâve mentioned:
letâs talk about how one of the common tags on tumblr, common enough that it pops up when i type âterfâ in the tag bar, is âterfs do interactâ. letâs talk about how tumblr, the place where pretty much all the most recent LGBT+ pride flags have originated, the so-called queerest place on the internet, is actively fostering the growth of a transphobic subculture. letâs talk about how your inaction has allowed ace exclusionists to gain a foothold in the young queer community, how your unwillingness to enforce the ban on actual hate speech has led to a generation unfamiliar with the legitimate history of the word âqueer.â
(side note for general readers: a good rule of thumb is, if a term has entered the lexicon of academia, it is more or less universally accepted as the Appropriate Name For The Thing. thatâs your number one tipoff for the revisionist history behind this âqueer is a slurâ discourse, which was kicked off and is carried on primarily by TERFs).
so yeah: letâs talk about the community guidelines. letâs talk about selectively enforcing them.
because iâm happy to hear youâre not going to stand for targeted harassment and hate speech anymore. genuinely, i am. what i want to know is whether you mean it.
do you care about the health and safety of your userbase, and respect your so-called community guidelines? or are they just a convenient excuse for you to distance yourself from the latest shitstorm youâve kicked off, defend the honour of your financial assets, and wash your hands entirely of the fallout?
I also want to add to this to say please take the survey! I know people who donât want a feature usually just donât take whatever survey but this is extremely important. We need @staff to know that we do not want this feature and to do that we actually have to tell them. Please take the survey and please write how much you do not want this feature.
Tumblr is not the place for paid content, itâs a social media website/app. There are far better websites for paid content that people already use and are comfortable with, not only is this a bad idea for website content in general, itâs also a bad business idea. You will never be able to compete with OnlyFans, Patreon, KoFi, Twitch, or even just someoneâs independent website shop. This website is not set up to house paid content and if this truly gets implemented, it will only be a disorganized mess.
This is a bad idea.
Previously when this idea has been tested, itâs had a horrible backlash as well. Sixpenceee, Striders, Egberts, and other bloggers have tried to monetize their blogs only to face horrible repercussions. One of the main philosophies present in this website is anti-capitalism!!
So anyone reading this Iâm begging you to take this survey and tell @staff how awful of an idea this is and how you will not support it. Donât just ignore the survey.
BE LOUD
I took the survey but iâll reiterate: MONETIZING TUIMBLR IS SO FUCKING STUPID.
Not only that but the system will enable stalkers and creeps from being unblockable if they pay for content. And god knows what copyright fiascos will go down. Thereâs so much more than that too, that I donât have the energy to list out.
Hey @staff, instead of trying to monetize a largely anti-capitalist userbase, why dont you fucking listen to the issues weâve been BEGGING get fixed for YEARS??
If you monetize your hellsite, good fucking luck not losing another massive chunk of your users to the Dumb Fucking Bird App
























