\nFor Bluesky to thrive, it needs sex workers and Black Twitter<\/br>
\n2023-05-03 22:24:12<\/br><\/p>\n
In the months<\/span> since Elon Musk took over, and subsequently tanked<\/span><\/a>, Twitter, people have been desperate to find an alternative platform. Bluesky, a decentralized social network backed by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey, is the latest frontrunner.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Bluesky has already gained attention with its irreverent posting culture, but to keep users, it needs to maintain a safe environment for sex workers and other marginalized communities.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n In recent weeks, Bluesky has been hailed as a <\/span>shitposting wonderland<\/span><\/a> and a welcome respite from the increasingly rancid vibes that Twitter has been festering in since Musk took over as CEO. The user interface is nearly identical to Twitter\u2019s. Instead of tweets, users widely refer to posts as \u201cskeets\u201d \u2014 despite protest from Bluesky CEO Jay Graber and others who don\u2019t find <\/span>slang for semen<\/span><\/a> absolutely hilarious.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Reception to Bluesky has been overwhelmingly positive, with users comparing their feeds (unofficially known as the \u201cskyline\u201d) to <\/span>\u201cthe first day of high school\u201d<\/span><\/a> and <\/span>\u201cearly Twitter vibes.\u201d<\/span><\/a> One user described Bluesky as a much-needed smoke break, <\/span>skeeting<\/span><\/a>, \u201cthis app is like the cousins you \u2018go for a walk\u2019 with at your conservative family\u2019s thanksgiving dinner.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Bluesky\u2019s posting culture is noticeably less hostile than Twitter\u2019s \u2014 for now.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Though discourse on Bluesky flares up every now and then \u2014 like whether users should be allowed to threaten generally disliked public figures with hammers \u2014 so far, conflict doesn\u2019t usually reach the fervor of a Twitter spat. Since Bluesky is still invite-only, and users lose remaining invite codes if their invitees are banned, there\u2019s a unique incentive to maintain a less toxic environment than on Twitter. Granted, Bluesky is still in its extremely early days, and with such a small user base, it hasn\u2019t been around long enough for hostility to brew like it has on Twitter.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Bluesky, like Mastodon, aims to be a decentralized, federated social network. But instead of running on ActivityPub, the protocol powering Mastodon and other open source social platforms, Bluesky uses its own <\/span>AT Protocol<\/span><\/a>, and aims to establish a community labeling system that would allow users to \u201copt in\u201d to certain content filters. The company also plans to allow users to choose what they want to see by offering a \u201cmarketplace of algorithms\u201d instead of using a conventional \u201cmaster algorithm\u201d employed by most social media sites. Users will be able to switch between seeing specific feeds and viewing multi-algorithm feeds.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cModeration is a necessary feature of social spaces. It\u2019s how bad behavior gets constrained, norms get set, and disputes get resolved,\u201d Graber wrote in a <\/span>recent blog post<\/span><\/a>. \u201cWe\u2019ve kept the Bluesky app invite-only and are finishing moderation before the last pieces of open federation because we wanted to prioritize user safety from the start.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Even in its bare-bones state \u2014 users can\u2019t even send DMs yet \u2014 Bluesky\u2019s culture already stands out among Twitter alternatives. Mastodon, for example, is populated by tech enthusiasts, academics and journalists, but tends to be so dry that there\u2019s little motivation to scroll it for fun. Skeets, on the other hand, lean into the unhinged. Nudity and sexuality aren\u2019t censored, and scrolling past tiddies on the skyline is to be expected. The cheeky posting culture that exists on Bluesky has only encouraged non-Silicon Valley insiders to join, bringing a fresh energy that other Twitter would-be alternatives are sorely lacking.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Bluesky is a fetus among social media giants like Twitter and Facebook. But in its earliest stage, it has a unique opportunity to cultivate a diverse, vibrant community of the users who made Twitter fun. In its heyday, Twitter\u2019s memes, mutual aid networks and other redeemable traits existed because of Black Twitter and sex workers. Much of internet culture originated in Black communities. \u201cNot safe for work\u201d (NSFW) Twitter receives consistent, and growing, engagement. Adult content makes up 13% of Twitter, according to internal documents obtained by <\/span>Reuters<\/span><\/a> last year.<\/span><\/p>\n Aveta, a Black software engineer who has invited over 500 Black users to Bluesky, wasn\u2019t a fan of Mastodon because \u201ca lot of Black people weren\u2019t on there,\u201d and \u201cthere was a lot of racism that was going unchecked.\u201d She asked to only be referred to by her first name out of fear of harassment. She made it her mission to invite as many Black users as possible, she said, because Black communities drive the culture of social platforms like Twitter, Instagram and TikTok.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s so crazy that despite how much time has passed, exposing how Black people have so much power and influence, especially in tech communities, especially in social media, that people want to disregard that,\u201d Aveta said. \u201cYeah, there were people who were in before all that, but the ones who really got it jump started, who really came in at the middle, were Black people.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Before Aveta started inviting other Black users to Bluesky, the site was \u201cvery white, very quiet and very small.\u201d She said there was a noticeable vibe shift as more of Black Twitter joined.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIf they want to know where it started, the hype of recent days? Black people. I think my invite tree can be testimony to that.\u201d \u2013 Aveta, a software engineer who invited over 500 Black users to Bluesky. A social graph<\/a> developed by Bluesky user Jaz shows Aveta\u2019s connections. Image Credits:<\/strong> Jaz<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cYou know when you step out into a meadow and get that fresh breeze, that little breath of crisp air?\u201d Aveta said \u201cIt\u2019s exactly how it felt \u2026 I just want people to set the record straight, if they want to know where it started, the hype of recent days? Black people. I think my invite tree can be testimony to that.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Black Twitter\u2019s influence extends beyond Twitter itself, shaping humor and pop culture both online and in real life. Black creators typically create and spread trends across the internet, from choreographing viral TikTok dances to organizing digital activism. Guides to internet language often describe phrases like \u201cate this up\u201d and \u201cout of pocket\u201d as \u201cGen Z slang,\u201d which is <\/span>misidentified and uncredited<\/span><\/a> African American Vernacular English (AAVE.) \u201cGagged\u201d and \u201cslay,\u201d for example, <\/span>originated in the ballroom scene<\/span><\/a>, the Black and Latino drag culture that emerged in 90s New York City.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n In a 2016 essay for <\/span>Model View Culture<\/span><\/a>, Northwestern University professor Lauren Michelle Jackson noted that meme origins are often found in the \u201ccirculatory movement of Black vernacular itself.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cBlack folks are hardly the sole proprietors of internet memes, yet it\u2019s undeniable that memes are at their liveliest \u2014 that is, which allows them to keep living \u2014 is in fact indebted to Black processes of cultural survival,\u201d Jackson wrote.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Twitter is also unique because it allows nudity and sexually explicit content, unlike most major social platforms. The site has become a safe haven for sex work, and provides a centralized space for creators to advertise their services, interact with other sex workers and share vital resources with their community.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Sex work Twitter has existed since Twitter launched in the late 2000s, and grew as other online spaces became more hostile toward sexually explicit content. In 2018, U.S. law enforcement agencies <\/span>shut down<\/span><\/a> the classified ads site Backpage, and later that year, <\/span>Tumblr banned porn<\/span><\/a>. Sex workers flocked to Twitter, making that community one of the fastest growing subcultures on the platform.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Twitter is struggling to keep its active users. Last year, market research agency Insider Intelligence <\/span>predicted<\/span><\/a>\u00a0that the site will lose more than 30 million users in the next two years. In April, data intelligence firm SimilarWeb <\/span>reported<\/span><\/a> that users are visiting Twitter less, with a 7.3% drop in worldwide visits in March.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Though <\/span>interest in Twitter is waning<\/span><\/a>, NSFW content is one of the only topics on the platform gaining interest among English-speaking users. (The other is cryptocurrency.)\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n But sex workers themselves are questioning whether Twitter will stay safe. After Musk\u2019s takeover in October, many adult content creators expressed concern over <\/span>losing the sex work community<\/span><\/a> they built on Twitter. For now, Bluesky offers a promising alternative platform with decent moderation.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Olivia Snow, a dominatrix and research fellow at the UCLA Center for Critical Internet Inquiry, said Musk\u2019s takeover disrupted marginalized communities and made it \u201cmore difficult to do literally any job\u201d on the site because \u201cthe vibe sucks ass.\u201d She\u2019s hopeful that Bluesky\u2019s moderation and content policies will pave the way for a less hostile social platform than Twitter has become.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThe main thing that I\u2019m heartened by is the fact that they seem to have infrastructure in place for porn. It tells me that they are actually taking moderation seriously,\u201d Snow said. \u201c\u2026 Not in the way Twitter has started to, which is allowing whatever, and not the way that Instagram is super anti-sex. The way it\u2019s set up will allow users to really customize their experience.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Bluesky allows users to set their own content moderation, providing an \u201cinfrastructure for porn.\u201d Image Credits:<\/strong> Bluesky<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Bluesky not only allows explicit content, but also lets users choose the content they want to see. Users can toggle between seeing explicit content on their feeds, having a warning for sensitive content or avoiding it all together. The platform also categorizes content as \u201cexplicit sexual images\u201d like pornography, \u201cother nudity\u201d including non-sexual and artistic images, and \u201csexually suggestive\u201d content that does not include nudity.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Natrix, a sex worker and NFT artist, was originally skeptical of censorship on Bluesky.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI do think the lines between these categories can still be blurry, but that will always be the case with art and porn, as sexualization is so subjective,\u201d Natrix said. \u201cIt will be interesting how things progress once the platform grows and how their detection system is fine-tuned, which they acknowledge is not yet perfect.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The delineation is still clearer than Tumblr\u2019s approach to easing content policies after its 2018 porn ban. Late last year, Tumblr started <\/span>allowing nudity again<\/span><\/a>, but not \u201cdepictions of sexually explicit acts,\u201d causing confusion among users. Some adult content creators <\/span>said<\/span><\/a> their NSFW content was flagged even if it didn\u2019t contain nudity.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cGiving users the option to choose which of these potentially sensitive categories they see, rather than outright banning or shadowbanning entire accounts, is still miles ahead of what we are used to on Twitter or Instagram, where sex workers are too often selectively punished for being sex workers more than for the content itself,\u201d Natrix said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Snow also questioned how Bluesky would handle doxxing. OnlyFans immediately bans users for sharing creators\u2019 legal names, but no other social platform considers that to be doxxing. <\/span>Meta Verified<\/span><\/a> came under fire in sex work circles for requiring users to change their Instagram display name to the name on their government ID in order to receive verification.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Marginalized communities are usually responsible for building social media subcultures, but are also disproportionately moderated and harassed online. Black TikTok creators have repeatedly spoken out about how <\/span>content discussing race and cultural appropriation<\/span><\/a> appears to be censored on the app. Last year, a coalition of Black Twitch streamers penned an <\/span>open letter<\/span><\/a> to the company demanding better protection from harassment. And under Musk\u2019s tutelage, <\/span>hate speech on Twitter<\/span><\/a> has skyrocketed.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n If Bluesky aspires to be a viable alternative to Twitter, it needs to be better than Twitter was at its peak \u2014 and safer for marginalized users. In its nascent, invite-only phase, it\u2019s already demonstrated that it will take action against hate speech. Over the weekend, Bluesky <\/span>swiftly banned<\/span><\/a> a user who harassed others with transphobic remarks.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Bluesky does appear open to fostering a sex worker community. Natrix noted that she received coveted invite codes (users usually only receive one code every two weeks, unless they\u2019re gifted more by Bluesky staff) after she posted about wanting to bring more sex workers to the platform.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Though Bluesky doesn\u2019t shun adult content, the platform does appear to be adding some restrictions on nudity. As of Monday, though, the platform has a \u201cno boobs (or dicks, or asses)\u201d on the discovery page policy, per a <\/span>post<\/span><\/a> from Bluesky technical advisor Jeremy Johnson. The goal, Johnson said, is for users to avoid nudity unless they deliberately opt in.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The platform may be safe for sex workers now, but like Tumblr, could take on more puritanical policies as it faces external pressure over time.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWe also know that sex workers often help to shape platforms and the way people use them, only to be pushed off later \u2014 but maybe<\/span> the decentralized nature of it all will help when the going gets rough,\u201d Natrix said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/techcrunch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/skeet.jpg?resize=680%2C439&ssl=1\")
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<\/p>\n![Bluesky allows users to toggle between various content moderation settings, categorizing content as \"explicit sexual images,\" \"other nudity,\" \"sexually suggestive,\" \"violent\/bloody,\" \"political hate-groups,\" \"spam,\" and \"impersonation.\" Users can choose to hide, warn, and show such content.](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/techcrunch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/IMG_50199C8A0350-1.jpeg?resize=350%2C680&ssl=1\")
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