Featured Image Credit: Twitch, The Pokemon Company
Topics: Twitch
Whether it’s down to streamers or the platform itself, Twitch is no stranger to controversy. Earlier this month, the site had to step in after its Boost This Stream feature was abused, pushing NSFW videos to the homepage for all to see - and Twitch isn’t afraid to ban those who criticise its actions.
There’s plenty of wholesome content to be found on Twitch as well though. The Twitch community recently raised $60,000 for one streamer after he shared his cancer story. The latest news to break out of Twitch-land though, isn’t quite so delightful. The site is now being condemned for its sexist double standards, as stream titles permit hate against men - and men only.
There's never a dull moment on Twitch. Take a look at these funny wins and fails below.
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In a bid to moderate their content, Twitch has been cracking down on hate raids and inappropriate language to enhance the experience of both its streamers and viewers but in their attempts to combat hate speech and sexism, the site has alienated its male users.
As discovered by Twitter user shirahiko_, there is no consequence to titling a stream ‘I hate men’ but if you instead choose to name your stream ‘I hate women,’ it’s a different story. The site then reads, “This title may conflict with Twitch’s moderation policy.” In case you forgot Twitch, sexism goes both ways.
The rule seems to permit hatred towards men, which of course isn’t okay. Shirahiko_ went on to explain the discovery, “Twitch says that hating men is okay but don’t touch the women [...] I just thought it was crazy funny how I wanted to call my Twitch stream ‘I hate women’ to mock the fact that people are blowing things out of proportion again but saying ‘all men are bad’ in the vtuber community, but Twitch said no.”
Twitch has yet to respond to discovery which users are calling a clear display of discrimination, and there’s little Twitch can say to deny that assertion.