Tumblr has once again allowed nudity on its platform. As they say, not everything is possible.
After years of losing users, blogging site Tumblr announced this week that it is lifting its 2018 ban on nudity. You will again be able to post photos of naked men and women on the platform.
In a post revealing the new rules to the community, Tumblr explains that users can share content on the site that contains “nudity, adult scenes, or sexual themes”but nothing that “overtly shows sexual acts.”If the idea of posting nudity could get you back on Tumblr, here’s what you need to know before you jump back into it without breaking the new rules.
Nudity and sexual content is allowed but properly labeled.
In September, Tumblr announced the introduction of “community tags”on its site, allowing users to customize their feed to their “preferred comfort level”by defining the type of content they want to see. The company explained this week that it expects users who post anything with nudity or sexual content to explicitly flag it so that those who don’t want to see it can opt out.
This means that the tags “mature”or “sexy theme”are present. But before that, you need to make sure the images don’t go too far because Tumblr doesn’t want to be a platform for anything big.
Tumblr opening restrictions
Before the big porn ban in 2018 on Tumblr, the rules were simple. “Do what you want”or something like that, so to speak. The new rules do not mean a return to that era. This time around, Tumblr is bringing more nuance. “Nudity and other types of adult content are generally welcome,”but “visual depictions of explicit sexual activity”are not.
How does Tumblr determine which content has gone too far? No one knows, but the company clarifies that it will always have the final say. “This list is not exhaustive and the final interpretation is up to us,”according to Tumblr’s definition of “adult content.”
However, Tumblr does not allow content that is “hateful, spammy, violent, or otherwise illegal.”
Tumblr and digital sex workers
The new rules also explain that Tumblr will shut down accounts that post links or ads on adult partner networks or post links, text or images that advertise erotic or escort services.
So, if you’ve been thinking about using Tumblr to promote your OnlyFans account, this is not the right plan.
Tumblr is back?
After banning nudity in 2018, Tumblr lost about a third of its users, but the platform is far from a ghost town in 2022. It has about 135 million monthly users, and more importantly, Tumblr boasts of having “good”users: about 48% of users are under the age of 25. In comparison, almost 40% of Facebook users are over 65 years old. Having younger users means more life on the platform.
With such a user base and features like anonymity, low ads, no character limit, and nudity again, Tumblr could be making a comeback. Even better: the platform is not going to charge you every month for any kind of certification.