In a policy change, Google announced that from March 23, 2025, its Blogger service would no longer allow users to post images or videos that contain sexually explicit material or graphic nudity in the open. This is a change from the previous Blogger policy, which accepted such material as long as the blog was tagged as “adult” and contained a content warning.
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The Policy Change
With the new policies, any blog that has sexually explicit content or graphic nudity will be privatized, viewable only by the owner of the blog, administrators, and individuals invited by the owner. Google said that the content will not be deleted, but will not be publicly viewable. Users who want their blogs to remain public will need to delete the explicit content.
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But Google has made exceptions to this general principle. Nudity of “substantial public benefit,” i.e., that which is artistic, educational, documentary, or scientific, will still be permitted. This middle-ground strategy attempts to balance application of community standards against the maintenance of free expression in some cases.
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Reaction of the Blogger Community
The report has incensed a wave of outrage from veteran Blogger users. Some fretted over the retroactive application of the policy change, which could affect blogs that had been around for over ten years. Critics argue that to some users, particularly those who use the site as a form of self-expression, the removal of graphic content may be interpreted as a suppression of personal expression.
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To counter the outcry, Google has decided to go back on the policy change. Rather than private making adult content blogs, the firm will “step up enforcement around our existing policy prohibiting commercial porn.” That is, as long as bloggers properly indicate their adult content by having their blogs labeled as “adult,” they do not need to do anything else. Google will still show a warning page before such blogs to alert viewers to the content.
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Implications for Content Creators
For adult content creators, particularly those who create adult content, this policy reversal is a welcome relief. It lets them keep using Blogger as a venue for their productions without risk of losing their content or having their blogs go into private modes. However, it also highlights the need to follow platform guidelines and be mindful of community standards imposed by service providers.
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This case describes the fine line platforms such as Blogger must balance between policing community standards and protecting user expression. The reversal remedies problems for today but sets a precedent for how such policies will evolve in the future.
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+3 Computerworld +3 Computerworld Conclusion Google’s first move to ban sexually explicit material on Blogger and then reversing the decision after users complained demonstrate the nuances of keeping order in online communities. Content providers can still use Blogger to publish their content if they follow the website’s rules for the time being. While online communities struggle to cope with these challenges, users need to stay abreast of policy updates and make an effort to adapt their content to suit the community norms.
