October 3, 2002
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KEEPING IT CLEAN
I like to think I’m not a prude. But please help me keep Xanga relatively clean at least. If you think of your blog as a movie, please keep any pictures rated R. Pics of genitalia and intercourse are generally XXX (oops I’m sorry, NC-17!).
Seriously folks, I’m liable for this stuff. I really bust my ass to be chill on freedom of speech issues: there are no cussword filters, and I’m proud that I’ve stood up to threats of lawsuits about yall’s posts on abortion, religion, and the death penalty. (Heh, these emails always start with “I’m a big believer in free speech but…”)
But XXX pics get people thinking pornography, and that doesn’t feel like what Xanga is all about. I’ve learned to pick my battles, and the right to post pornography doesn’t seem like one I really want to fight. I’d rather fight for our right to post about just about anything else…
This policy isn’t set in stone: it’s my opinion, based on talking with a few Xangans over email complaints (you know who you are!). I’d like to hear from everyone now: is this something I should reconsider? Let me know what you think!
Comments (63)
I think that our blogs should be respected as our property. I don’t think that others should dictate, “anonymously”, what they deem appropriate for someone else’s site.
Granted, some things can be a little out of hand. And you don’t want a situation of setting up a porn/warez store house. But celebration of the human form is just that.
Honestly, if I see something I don’t agree with, I move on. I don’t sit around trying to police everyone that doesn’t think, talk, see, act the way I do.
I mean, a blog is supposed to be free expression right? So if that blog isn’t hateful towards anyone, why be concerned about it? Inform the offended person, that they should excercise their free will and move along or block the offending site.
hear hear !!! I agree totally with Miss M(when she is not stuttering lol) … kinda like if you don’t like what you see, hear or read .. move along .. are our blogs not our voices? Our Views… on life, things and what not???
Where does it stop.. I mean you are the decision maker in all respect to Xanga… but you can only make so many people happy …. no one wants to be patronized ..
I agree. I think tasteful nude art is ok. But please, no XXX.
God Bless Atoka
Hmmm…so does that make it art if the sexual things or REAL body parts and are colored in Paintshop? Is Anime’ going to be cionsidered porn…or art? See, that free speech thing gets pretty sticky at times I think…especially when you don’t enforce it all the way across the board. Is intensely sexual writing going to be considered porn…I know a few sites here on Xanga that many people consider pornographic, that have yet to POST a picture…and I know at least ONE that considers posting penis pics in multicolors art. Slippery slope there, eh?
I agree with Miss M. It’s a fine line and different people are going to view the subject at different angles. As the saying goes…One man’s junk is another man’s treasure. Personally, I think I don’t think policing sites is the best way to go. I find a lot of sites offensive especially those people pushing religion onto everybody…but instead of complaining…I just move on. If you don’t like the site…then don’t read it. If it’s not one thing it’s another. If you start banning sites for pictures…then it will move on to what people write and so forth. Then you are left with a bunch of blogs with smiley faces on them. The rest of us will move on to a place where we can speak our mind.
I know *I* wouldn’t want to be caught between the ACLU and The American League Of Prudish People With Nothing Better To Do Than Complain About Xanga (ALPPWNBTDTCAX, for, uh… short).
I think if it’s a written policy, then you’re set. People will know what to expect, and what not to expect.
I also think you’re doing a really good job of maintaining the balancing act.
We just want to have Someone back, nude or dressed. Give us Someone back.
i think everyone above ^ has pretty much given good points. take w. bush for wanting to get rid of that one statue of a naked person (i think it was a man if memory serves me). pornography is not black and white. there are many degrees. remember that before you dictate to us artists of what we can and can not sculpt.
cheers
~michelle
I agree with everyone. About everything.
I visited a site today which caused me to splutter my drink as the page loaded and I was presented with an up close and personal view of a naked hombre. I wasn’t shocked or offended by this; it just wasn’t what I expected to see. The guy whose site it was is gay and likes posting pictures of guys he likes. No biggie. In fact, come to think of it, there are naked men in my banner. I don’t feel like a pornographer though.
But yes, I do think a line needs to be drawn. If for example, the picture I saw had been of a child being sexually abused, I would have been shocked and offended. You can’t and shouldn’t expect to please all the people all the time, but having something in your legal mumbo jumbo about illegal material (in the state of the US that Xanga is based in) might help.
Incitement of racial hatred
Child pornography
Deliberate spelling mistakes
Failure to print out and keep a scrapbook of every single one of my blogs
These are a few of the things I’d like to see people put in the xanga slammer for.
Freedom of expression should remain within the guidelines of the rules of Xanga.
For folks that HAVE to have the nudity, maybe a password protected site could be developed….. going to the XxXanga….. Maybe for those that must express in Porn?
It’s not prudish, in my opinion to be tasteful in content.
oh ok, I just reread your terms of use and you’ve got all that already. But a typo must have kept out my last two points.
I guess at the end of the day, good judgement will have to be exercised. If the site in question is being used exclusively as a forum for any of the nasties, shut it down….
It seems like an easy matter but I can see how it’s actually a bit of a nightmare to control. Wouldn’t want your job!
Here’s my opinion:
If you want “true” freedom of expression, set up a box at your house, and host your own blog. Harsh, but that’s the way it goes. Deal with it.
Whether you’re a XangaPreemie or a Classic user, you’re still using someone else’s gear to exercise your freedom of expression. And unless you’re buying your own hosting and software and equipment, your blog is *not* your property. Only your content is. (Fine line, that, but one that needs to be remembered with hosted services.)
So, if you want to post “cutting edge” stuff that “most people” (uptight or not) would consider porn — visual or otherwise — sign up over at sexblogs.com, they were made for this stuff. If you’re into posting thoughtful diatribes on touchy subjects, then sit tight.
All that to say this: Xanga already has a TOS, and the TOS has porn and obscenity provisions. Xanga has a right to close down any site it deems obscene or pornographic because WHY? — It’s their toys and their rules. Think shutting sites down over this sort of expression sucks ass? Then read the TOS — you agreed to it when you signed up.
The point of this is, Xanga laid the ground rules, and everyone who’s a member, free or paid, agreed to them. Why are we even having this discussion, that members are the community arbiters of what’s pornographic or obscene? They’re not — Xanga is. They own the marbles that everyone else here is playing with.
So, if anyone has a bone to pick about what’s pornographic or obscene, read the TOS and remember that, as a member, at the end of the day it doesn’t really matter whether *you* think it’s not obscene or pornographic — it’s what Xanga and the US Justice Dept (who have a history of not appreciating the human form) think.
BTW – Blogs aren’t even a blip on the adult industry radar. If they really wanted to, Xanga could just come right in, charge what they really wanted to charge for membership and not worry about money ever again. But, again, that’s just my opinion.
End Transmission.
We use xanga, but it is ours only to a limited degree. You and the other “xanga gods” set those limits. You have the right to set them anywhere you want. Those who want to look at people posting their privates can leave xanga if they don’t like the rules. Just as others will leave if there are no limits set and xanga is allowed to deteriorate to the basest level.
Often people haranguing about freedom of speech remind me of spoiled children who just don’t like to be told what to do. Sooner or later they will learn that there are limits on everything even if they don’t like it, and that generally those limits are there for a good reason.
Thank you for your efforts to keep xanga clean.
…i applaud your past and current efforts in keeping Xanga “clean”. That is just one of the ingredients that makes Xanga a pleasure. There are enough web sites out there in cyberspace for those who want to roll in the muck, Xanga doesn’t need to join them.
MuSe
I agree completely with malleron. Well said!
If it were up to me every opinion but mine would be banned, and the entire world would be forced to watch nothing but circus midgets wrestling in chocolate custard for all eternity but fortunately I’ve been deemed a crank and barred from every standing for parliament and the salad bar at sizzler respectively.
A lot of people wax lyrical about the “Fine line between pornography and art”, but the reality of the matter is usually it’s quite easy to tell the difference. If you really feel the need for XXX to be part of your blog, my thought would be why not just post the link up without actually displaying the image? That way I’m happy, the porn freaks are happy and the xanga gods remain remarkably lawsuit free!
Paracetamol “Won’t somebody please think of the freakin children!”
I think that those that would wash other’s mouths out with virtual, “soap”, should in fact get a life.
I said free expression not free speech. I fully understand that Xanga has their rules and it’s their site. But what if they say, “You know what? Nudity is alright here. We’re not “porn r us” so don’t go overboard, but a naked part here or there is nice to look at.” I seriously doubt a lot of you would be praising that policy.
Take for instance, Malleron. Why am I on the ”miscellaneous” content you read? So you can make sure that I’m falling in line with the Xanga guidelines? Or is it because you [B]want[/B] to go there and read my site?
If you go there and get offended, that is simply YOUR choice. I think people are forgetting the free will it takes to continually go back and forth to sites they are offended by. You’re making a choice to go to content you don’t feel comfortable with.
These rules:
Incitement of racial hatred
Child pornography
Bestialty
Harassment
Death threats
Those are things that can hurt a community.
A naked penis with a doll on it, does not.
One point that no one’s dealt with yet is that text can be scanned and you can back out once you’ve seen a few objectionable words. If it’s a picture, it hits you full in the face and there’s no avoiding it.
I’m not a prude about the human body, but if I regularly see stuff that’s objectionable, I won’t be back to that site, no matter how great the written content is.
I’m still on the fence as to whether graphics should be considered speech and given the same rights. But when it comes down to it, I know that you try to be as fair and non-censorious as possible, while still keeping this a site where most people can feel comfortable.
Uh-oh. Does posing a Ken Doll and a Stone Cold Doll in a compromising position violate terms of service?
Ok My feelings…… I roared at the little cowboy Miss M posted. Then I looked again and roared out loud thinking of this dude making that clip. It’s funny but not suitable for general audience. I also told her she was pushing her luck. I’ve also seen xangans post pics of their own peckers. (I would but I don’t have a camera with a macro lens at the moment.) A few of the pecker shots I’ve seen looked more like exhibitionism<< spell that, not the art they portend. One was just an accident when the dude was showing us his new cell phone. I roared at that too.
One of my favourite xangans has posted a few pics that are erotic and sacriligious. I won’t admit to being aroused. It was art. It was also porn. I don’t think it belonged, but it didn’t disturb me.
Honestly…. I don’t think we need any aroused art on xanga. ( I can get that at make_me_happy.com) That pretty much leaves erections out. Sex and nudity and yes even boners are a natural . I get a little uncomfortable knowing there are kids here though.
This all reminds me of lenny bruce and george carlin in his early years.
We’ve come a long way baby. But would it be so bad to slow this inevitable progression down a little?
Maybe xanga needs a good site bad site filter. If a member posts less than wholsome material and are found out, they are tagged as limited. (not closed down) All other members are denied access unless they specifically ask permission. Way too complicated for me. I do know that some truely nasty crap will always show up. No way around that.
You know what? After saying all that. I don’t think it would hurt any of us to tone it down a bit.
Shit. Now I’m never gonna get favours from Miss M.
I’ve talked enough……..
I really appreciate the way that benevolentmitch puts a warning on his site. Its become obvious that we have a lot of underage people on Xanga, we aren’t all adults here. I know there are some Xanga sites that I’m not comfortable having my kids view. I completely support freedom of speech, I also think that freedom of speech doesn’t mean that we have the right to impose our speech inappropriately on others. I’ve always understood that free speech doesn’t include the right to yell ‘fire’ in a crowded building – the freedom demands that we accept responsibillity for the consequences of our exercise.
i think we can do without the pornography.
Damn. I hate having to chime in on this, but I gotta. I do not think there is anything wrong with the human body. I don’t even think it’s that harmful for kids to see it.
I do think that it is censorship to label something pornography and to even try to draw a line between art and pornography. No one can agree where that line is drawn.
If you censored Deevaa or Zoodom I would be outraged. Although I don’t go to Zoodom’s site at work and I’m even careful about Deevaa’s when I blog here.
That said, I am sensitive about the fact that even if you could win a lawsuit you may not have the money to defend it, and that is unfortunately an effective tool of the prudes.
That also said, I am sensitive to the kind of bandwidth that could eat you up if xanga became known as a safe haven for naked pictures.
For these reasons I say that if you don’t want xanga to become a porn site, do what you will to control that. I would suggest that you try to make a judgement between those people that are expressing themselves (maybe for shock value, or where the nudity is not the exclusive purpose of the site), and those who are trying to actually be a porno site.
How about some new account settings?
1 – A site (or maybe per-entry) setting that indicates the presence of adult content. This could be under the control of the site owner, and by Xanga (to handle abuse complaints).
2 – A user setting that indicates whether or not a user wants to see adult content.
Set #2 to “no” as a default, and when the user hits a site with adult content, he/she gets a message like “the site you are trying to view contains adult content. click here to change your adult content preferences.” Maybe have the user click through some additional Terms of Service when they agree to view adult content.
Maybe setting #1 could trigger the presence of a boilerplate disclaimer at the bottom of an “adult” page?
Obviously, porn and beauty are in the eyes of their respective beholders. A system like this would put this situation completely in the control of the beholder, where it belongs. Surely you’ve got better things to do than decide what we should all be looking at, right?
Being an adult…that stuff doesn’t offend or shock me in any way…however…
Artistic freedom or otherwise…since we all know there are kids, sometimes very young ones, who also are part of the Xanga commuity, it would be much more polite not to post erotic pix…whether they are art, porn or anything in between. It would be a gesture of common courtesy …not becuase someone says you can’t post such things. Its sad that consideration towards others loses out over people’s senses of entitlement. MY freedom MY art MY blog…I think that only works up to a point…when you are part of a community you don’t get to always have a ME ME ME attitude. Perhaps at least put a warning before posts that are going to contain that kind of stuff? Or post links instead of pix? Or get your blog hosted elsewhere?
Either way, I figure the Xanga powers that be have the right and obligation, whether a person paid for their site or not, to remove any lewd content that might get them in legal trouble.
I was going to say something along the lines of what seanmeister said. Yahoo!, for instance, has a setting for users’ personal profiles so that they can set their profiles as “general content” or “adult content” and they do not allow visitors under such and such an age to enter. I also like BenevolentMitch’s warning; I think it’s a good way to give visitors advance notice of what’s coming.
Yesterday, I was browsing blogs from my work computer, as I usually do, looking for stuff for ZangaZine. I came across a blog via the FC list that, when it loaded up, had a large, graphic photo of a penis. Not an artistic image or a naked-man image in which the penis would be incidental as part of the whole package, but just the penis. Had my boss walked in at that moment, I might well have been fired. I’m terrified that that image might be stored somewhere on my computer, where the techies or web police here at the office could find it.
Warning would be nice.
I like Seanmeister’s ideas. Especially:
2 – A user setting that indicates whether or not a user wants to see adult content.
Set #2 to “no” as a default, and when the user hits a site with adult content, he/she gets a message like “the site you are trying to view contains adult content. click here to change your adult content preferences.” Maybe have the user click through some additional Terms of Service when they agree to view adult contentYou give the person that doesn’t care to see something a chance to excercise their choice to block it.
That’s an excellent idea…
It satisfies those that don’t want to, “accidentally”, stumble across objectionable (to them) material, and keeps others from feeling as though they’re being railroaded to conform to some arbitirary mold.
i totally agree with Malleron. put a tally mark under her column for me
How about this:
1. Implement an adult filter across the whole of Xanga, to keep kids out and to keep “free expression” untainted by The Man (or the perception thereof).
2. Members who want to post adult content — such as pics and prose that may be deemed questionable by more conventionally-minded souls (which happen to make up the majority of most civil societies) — must become Premium members. Moreover, the Premium charge that adult content providers on Xanga must pay would be at least double the standard Premium charge. This charge would help offset the expense associated with the additional bandwidth adult content generally uses, and the costs associated with developing and implementing an effective adult content filter across the community.
The charge would also help adult content providers understand the additional risk involved in Xanga allowing this type of content, and enables them to accept a little more responsibility for what they do in this community, beyond the oft-abused shield of ”free expression/speech.” That argument’s the clarion call of the online adult entertainment industry, and judging by the lawsuits brought by the FTC and the Justice Dept against significant industry players, the Feds have yet to agree with them.
I like Sean’s idea, with a bit of the one by malleron. Perhaps by paying for Premium, it would also make the person posting more culpable in the eyes of the law, especially if there was a price difference, and a stipulation of posting more graphic content. But then, I like seans idea just in general, it makes sense to me…and taken one step further could make posts able to be filtered by the users to exclude those that they MIGHT not want to read or see what is posted, by giving a “friends or subscribers only” or some sort of “allow list” feature. Just my two cents worth. I’m not particularly thrilled by porn, at all, real or Anime’ but I also think that after seeing what IS allowed to be posted in the quest for “free speech” that HAS created hurt for others, the porn issue to ME at least is smaller potatoes than it is to others. I guess I fall into the “if you don’t like it don’t go back group” mostly.
Hang on… There’s animated porn?? Give me a link.
Morality is an ever changing concept of our obsessions. Over the last half million years or so we all kept changing our minds about what is right and what is wrong. Just check out the last two hundred to get an idea of how unstable we are.
I’m still for trying to stay just a little below the cutting edge.
Of all the suggestions, Seanmeister’s is the best. He gets my vote.
I think it is the fairest of all and it doesn’t give people the sense that they’ve, “won” some moral victory. After all it’s just the internet folks.
if a xanga site has adult content, i think there should be a warning. BenevolentMitch’s site is a prime example of this, with the pop up. I think that would be the easiest way out of a sticky problem. Maybe a option feature that blocks individual entries on SIR and blog ring lists, saying “adult content” or something similar. be responsible with your freedom.
Miss M — It sounds like you’re missing my point. Morality has nothing to do with my argument, or John’s original post. It’s called Federal law, what they’ll do to Xanga and the people running it if they ever decide to move their ongoing crackdown on Internet porn into more mainstream online properties.
It may be “just the Internet” to you, but it definitely is not “just the Internet” to lawmakers and enforcers. While your sensibilities may allow for less “mainstream” content, the people who run the country that Xanga operates in do not share your view. Granted, they’re prudes, but their arms reach much farther than anyone’s posted penis.
That’s really the issue here — how much can certain community members get away with before Xanga and the people behind it land in jail.
I say, total freedom of expression is fine and dandy — but if you insist on marching under that banner, put your money where your mouth is and share the legal and financial load with the guys that brung ya here.
Malleron, Xanga is not a purveyor of porn. I find it interesting that sites like, the stileproject or the hun, or numerous sites THAT DO deal in porn continue to exist and flourish under the ever watchful eye of the Justice Department.
Sites I may add, that have no declaration of being unsuitable for the general public.
Any man, woman, girl, or boy, can stumble across the sites, and view in the banners alone all manners of human perversity.
The continued use of, “Xanga’s legal responsibility”, to its readership is simply a scare tactic used by the minority to control the majority.
The only comment that makes any sense as far as the legality of porn on this site is the one made by, Prometheus made about the hassle of frivilous lawsuits made by morality zealots. No they would not win, but I can see that Xanga would want to avoid that kind of hassle.
Seanmeister’s suggestion would be the right direction to go to avoid that nonsense.
a lot of us browse xanga while we are at work. i work at a non-profit against family violence. it does not bode well for me to stumble across these sites. the graphic pics of gentalia… unless it is on another site which requires you to click on a link… should not be on xanga sites. just my 2 cents. and 2 eprops.
Still no answer, John. See, that’s what is so frustrating to us. Now, Andy waited 6 months for an answer. Do you blame him for becoming a vigilante. Maybe, I have to go around harassing and threatening people as well, before you take the time to answer me? John, ignoring me is not going to stop me. I will continue. I will send you comments and emails en masse. I will bombard Xanga with Spam until we get an answer from you. You know my blog, you know my email. Xanga really wants to know why you shut Andy down, and more importantly, why the Stalker is still allowed to blog here.
WE WANT SOMEONE BACK.
Miss M — Hmmm…so according to your comments so far, Xanga is not a purveyor of porn, yet Xanga should somehow tolerate members posting adult-oriented, explicit content (or, as John put it, NC-17 rated).
How does having a Xangan posting penis pictures — filters or disclaimer pop-ups notwithstanding — not make Xanga a purveyor?
Just having that type of content available in the community – filtered or not — implicates Xanga as a party to the act of posting it. They own the means of production, if not the product itself. Therefore, they can be perceived (by lawyers, for example) as joyfully permitting adult-oriented content, thus rendering their current TOS null and void and becoming the purveyor that you claim they are not.
While I would agree with you that Xanga doesn’t exist to peddle porn, I disagree with your reasoning. Actually, it just reinforces my first comment — if members really want to exercise their freedom of expression and post whatever the hell they want, including explicit material they consider art or humor or whatever, then they need to own the means of production inasmuch as they can. For most people, including me, that means moving it to your own account, off-Xanga, that you pay for and run yourself.
Miss Malevolent clearly indicated what she had posted. Those who were offended shouldn’t have access her web log.
I subscribed to Miss malevolent’s blogging so when I clicked on the SIR , I didn’t see a picture, only her words. I had to make an effort to go to her site. And I was not offended at all!
But to say that it’s porn, for me anyway, I would have to disagree. I was just amused not excited.
Further is posting a photo of penis violating any laws? Surely not in the state of New York, where I believe your servers are located. Ok, it would be against the law, I think minors were recruited to look at the photo. But I don’t believe they were.
I would do further research on the laws before any decision is made. I mean you aren’t even charging us to post so therefore I can’t imagine posting a penis is breaking any laws. Check with MoMa
Further if some one says the photo is pornographic: here is the definition:
Pornography: Pictures, writings or films designed to arouse sexual excitement.
That’s kind of subjective isn’t it? Cause what if it doesn’t.
Its your thing, so this topic would ultimately depend on your level of comfort… but freedom of speech is just that unless, that is, it’s violating some law. (hee hee)
Semi-Random story:
I was at the DFW airport about a year ago, and had a 3 or 4 hour layover. They have internet kiosks there, and so I decided to punch on into my site.
“This site blocked b/c of it’s content” or something was the return reply.
I laughed. Mightily. I am still wondering if it was the occassional swear word on there, or the discussion of various liquors or God in my profile info…
I don’t *think* I have posted anything entirely too racy on my site, as far as pics go. However, if I did, I would hope I would get a note telling me to remove the pic or it would be removed for me…
There are bigger fish to fry, you’re right.
Nonetheless, I have seen some incredibly artistic nude shots on Xanga, and think it would be a shame to lose them completely.
Semi-random note 2: I saw a couple of comments from “job-bloggers” and how naked pics loading on the web page are inappropriate at work. My only question is… “Is doing personal stuff at work acceptable in your company?” If I blogged at work, that would be reason for termination… The wouldn’t even need to see a penis to fire me.
Damn. All you have to do is mention PORN, and everyone comes to comment!
I think we should be allowed to post nudity (naked body parts) but not necessarily porn (ie. penetration). And child porn really goes without saying. OF COURSE THAT SHOULD BE BANNED. Hello!?!
All in all, I’m all for freedom of speech and our blogs being the extension of ourselves. However, what is not allowed in OTHER public places (XXX pics), then we should probably respect that equally in THIS public domain, as well.
On nude pics/ porn on a xanga site: As long as it is kept tasteful I see nothing wrong with an occasional pic. No way out S&M or other “deviant” porn, but something on the level of a playboy picture – NOT pictoral with a pic for every entry – but an occasional tasteful pic.
On the block feature: enable it for ALL USERS, not just premium users. Classic users get their share of harrassment by psychos as well.
On someone’s blog: BRING BACK SOMEONE’S BLOG – FULLY RESTORED! Make the example of the one who has harrassed rather than making an example out of one of the victims striking back out of sheer frustration. Or it may seem like you are, at best playing the proverbial ostrich in the sandbox; at worst either the harrasser having some sort of major dirt on you or you are somehow personally involved with the harrasser.
Disclaimer: This is not any sort of threat or a comment with intent to threaten or harrass. It is merely a suggestion and an opinion.
Thank you
like you need this forty third comment. i just had to note down “whoa!” 42 comments. craaazy.
Hello dear!
I know it has been a while, but I just wanted to thank you for all that you do for us here on xanga.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH!
Anna
Well, I have to acknowledge the whole freedom of speech thing.
Having said that, I also have the freedom not to hear/see things I don’t want to, don’t I? Perhaps if someone who just HAS to post porn or their day would not be complete would also post a banner or warning at the top of their blog so that I could avoid what I don’t want to see, that would be helpful.
But there are plenty of children on Xanga. And I have always enjoyed the fact that I don’t feel like I have to have my defenses up when I’m in here. Although I don’t know that it’s been particularly stated, but it seems to be a very family-oriented place. Surely in the huge length and breadth of the world wide web there is a more appropriate place to post that kind of stuff.
Another thought is, in appreciation for all the work you do here for us and the way you accomodate all our petty needs, we could just comply with your requests and try to accomodate you for once.
amen! i mean i will admit, i was a bit weirded out about seeing the fcc stopping by my page…. but, yeah… i agree, xanga is not about porn… and if ya haven’t the deciency to keep xanga rated R, then xanga should not be the place for you….
Xanga isn’t for children anyway? I wouldn’t let any child of mine be on here.
Well, we are just using your server space, so you call the shots. I can see how you don’t want Xanga and free porn to become synonymous. How to deal with that and allow people to express themselves? I dunno. Perhaps, if you let people add ratings to their sites? Let them do it on their own.. based on what they feel is appropriate? And possibly, only certain ages can get into those site. For example, if I knew I wanted to post pics of a certain ermmmm naughty content *EEPS* then I would rate my site accordingly. By doing so, it would stop users who *honestly* state their age to be within the minor range from viewing. A little self-policing might be less intrusive?
For me, I just move on if it’s not something I want to see.
I do think Xanga is for people of all ages. It allows them a neat way to express themselves, try their hand at writing, and communicate with each other.
Tough call there. Hope you feel better soon.
You know what – as far as I am concerned, I know that each day when I cme here I am playing in YOUR backyard. You make the rules because it is YOUR backyard. If I don’t like them I am always free to go home.
I recently had a debate about porn in general and my attitude towards it with a friend,so this is interesting to me.A few thoughts:
* About people surfing at work and unexpectedly seeing pics which could get them into trouble – though it’s true that some people aren’t allowed to surf at work,there are also people legitimately using shared computers.For instance,if my comp breaks down I have to surf at internet cafes,and so having a warning pop-up would be good.I like the idea of this being an option built into all accounts,with people (both Classic and Premium users) able to select whether they want to see warnings about adult material.
* In the debate with the friend I mentioned,one of the objections I raised regarding porn was the fact that it may be made in circumstances where people,including underage people,are coerced or forced against their will into participation.He explained that in licensed sex shops,people buy stuff which is legal.He said that online there’s a lot of illegal stuff.I’m sure many of us get a lot of junk emails whose subject lines claim to contain pics of “legal” girls.
A pic,particularly one where the age of the person in it was hard to gauge,could be posted on someone’s site without Xanga necessarily being able to trace where it came from and whether it was legal.I suppose that’s where the idea mentioned above of people paying extra for more private sites could be useful;maybe there could be more control over sources of images etc,and Xanga/Xangans could avoid violating the law.
*Personally I don’t like the idea of it being posted.But I don’t know how I would define “it”.I wouldn’t object to people posting artistic nudes,but there are people out there who would find those offensive and consider them,well…”it”.
*So it seems like the best way to go is to ensure that legal issues are checked out and make sure that content in general is rated.I like the idea of a sliding scale of ratings;perhaps a language rating for anyone who would prefer not to run across that,and an independent one for nudity,porn (different degrees of porn too) and so on.
Xanga being clean is what keeps me here! Tasteful nudes are not porn…but porn is recognized immediately.
ive long been of the mindset that violence is far more base and disturbing than nudity of any kind.
it offends my sensibilities that a man being eating alive from the inside by scarab beetles in ‘the mummy’ garners a pg-13 rating whereas a nude form goes straight to r. do not pass go. do not collect $200… and if the nude form happens to be male… nc-17.
i may not want to see your nude body… but i will defend to the death your right to show it…
the truth is, if kids want to see internet porn, theyre not surfing xanga to do it. it just wouldnt be an efficient use of their time when any one of a million other sites provide professional (or amateur) and more graphic content.
i understand that people disagree. people always will… and i would defend that right as well.
and… another thing as a postscript… extraneous popups offend me more than the nude human form ever would… smile… but thats just me.
heh….there’s that “freedom at what price” thing again. Now if you ask for my opinion………whoops.there “I” go again. After all, who am “I” to challenge or impose regulations on this. But then again, I get tired of all the porn spamming to begin with. I would think this would be a sanctuary of some sort from that. yes it’s for everybody but But does “everybody” also means “everything” allowed ? Tough one.
Well, everyone’s got an opinion, just like they have… um… yeah.
Basically, short of banning all or allowing all, no one can draw ANY line. I can’t believe that it’s come to this now, when for a very long time it’s not been an issue. A particularly “famous” Xanga original was most recognized for his artfully altered photos of his member, as well as the erotic poetry he posted. Women all over this place went insane for this guy, all proclaiming broken hearts after he’d made them think the words he crafted were for each of them individually, and they found out otherwise.
Sure, the guy was a gigolo, and damn good at what he did. But no one ever really complained about the colored photos of his penis, or the silky sexiness of the language in his poems. So why is it a big deal now?
Because the people of this world can’t live without conflict, that’s why. We’ve battered the censorship issue here in nearly every form for MONTHS (yes John, MONTHS) without winning a thing, so as it’s been said already, let it be.
If you don’t like what you see, don’t let it scar you for life, just hit the back button. No, a picture of a penis is NOT going to fry your brain cells or send you to hell, so just move on.
No porn. There’s a big difference between words someone finds offensive and an image someone finds offensive. People read about the holocaust all the time, and they’re always like, “Oh, that’s so horrible.” Then they go on with their lives. People who lived it, who were in the army, who saw the dead bodies piled, still have nightmares. Go to a holocaust museum and you will view it in an entirely different light. Same applies to pornography. Images burn their way into your mind.
wholie cat…..
you get sooooo many comments… that are really just very long at that… who are you?
Biggest point made so far…this is the Xanga Gods’ game, don’t like the rules? Play a different game!
I used to work for AOL (please keep comments to a minimum, I didn’t last long
) and the biggest thing was SOME companies entrust their customers and some don’t. Anyone that says trust the customers who only need an anonymous email is ignorant, if I want to post porn here I could do it for weeks before I’d really be shut down.
I actually have no idea what the background is here but from the comments made, these are my opinions
—Matt
Uh … John? While I readily admit being somewhat chagrined that you haven’t subscribed to my site, I’d still like to show my full support of Xanga.
I say shut the mo fo’s down. You have too much on the line and it’s YOUR place, right?
Then … what you do … is create XXXanga.
Think about it.
Oh … btw, hope you’re feeling better. Sending White Light at ya.
being a father of two young boys and a christian living in the USA, i would hope that you could continue to support freedom of speech (aka porno and extreme or radical beliefs, expressions and illustrations) and the right to arm bears.
-xanga isnt really appropriate for kids (either are most email inboxes these days…((sigh))
-if you surf xanga and your boss finds porn on your desktop instead of that spreadsheet that was due last week, who’s fault is that?
-sean has a couple great ideas there
- also..some kind of user agreement… when users register for xanga as well should be enough legally to cover you.
..on the flip side
-you could institute a complaint button that queues and tracks numbers of complaints about a given blog
-you could set up kind of monitoring or content filters and implement them to suspend (or put on vacation) frequent offenders… but that would suck
you’re in a tough spot, thats for sure…i hope you achieve the best results for all concerned
I’m obviously not visiting the right sites! Haven’t seen any cheeky stuff! I have, however, visited sites that were so filled with verbal hatred that my stomach turned. A few inches of flesh would not do that for me… well, except the thought of Henry Kissenger’s, perhaps! I would rather trust you to make a per-issue decision rather than have a global policy. On the whole, I am astonished and uplifted by the quality and respect that exists – uncensored – on Xanga.
I think there are too many kids on Xanga to be allowing a penis to be floating around.
Whether you would let your kid on xanga or not doesnt matter, the fact is that there are kids and they are just as welcome.
I think we should keep a notch right before R.
I don’t like reading sites with cussing let alone body parts. (and I don’t read those)
It is all up to you John!
So, as of now, are Xangas designed solely to post porn against policy? Because I know of one…