In 2017, Twitch announced it would be doing more than just streaming video games, but actually host videos and television episodes, like a marathon of Mister Roger’s Neighborhood. In doing this, Twitch grew its fan base to new places, even having more of an audience than HBO or Netflix.
One of the major things that HBO or Netflix don’t have that Twitch does is a comments section, which can be an issue for the website and has led to harassment issues within the community. Twitch specifically wanted to address how the site plans to handle possible harassment in the community, stating that it wants “everyone to feel welcome” and “be proud to be apart of the community.”
Twitch also stated that “conduct [it] deem[s] hateful will result in an immediate indefinite suspension.” While still built with wiggle room, this updated guideline could eliminate a lot of the issues within the community, as well as stopping possible bullying and thwarting other users from engaging in harassing behavior.
As for sexual content, Twitch has a steeper hill to climb. While the IRL section of Twitch has certainly helped welcome new broadcasters to the platform, there is concern that some of those content creators are also using the streaming service to sell sexual content. The updated guidelines do give an overview of what Twitch wants to eliminate from the platform, but how far-reaching its actions will be is unclear.
In doing this, hopefully the Twitch community can become a more wholesome place for viewers of all ages and that they can feel part of the fun without having to worry about any kind of harassment or sexual content.
Players can find these rules fully laid out on Twitch’s blog and help articles and can see these changes go into affect on Monday, February 19.
