It's a sad day for Tumblr users, but fans of the former adult content haven made saying goodbye a little less painful with a priceless send off.
When Tumblr announced that it would be banning adult content on its site as of December 17th, it sent a shock wave through its community that rippled across the internet.
The announcement came after the Tumblr app's sudden removal from Apple's iOS App Store in November following a child pornography incident. Over fears of losing access to the Apple ecosystem, Tumblr resorted to drastic measures, banning all adult content. However, they may have underestimated just how big a role pornography played in the site's identity.
Since Tumblr's launch in 2007 the blogging platform had become a safe harbor for alternative sexual communities. From niche fetishes to LGBTQ friendly content, users and creators considered Tumblr one of the few sanctuaries from other male-dominated and often hostile online spaces. Now many of those users may be left without a place to express or explore their sexuality.
Before logging off forever though, users mourned the loss of porn-friendly Tumblr with a hilarious goodbye.
According to Tumblr, not all nudity or explicit content falls under the new ban. Exceptions will be made for art or political protest, but as of now the site's community guidelines bans sex acts, real-life human genitals, and the infamous "female-presenting" nipples.
What seemed to anger users most though was the type of content that is still on the site.
Predictably, the roll out of Tumblr's new content filter has been messy, sweeping up approved posts along with the newly banned material.
And without porn many are predicting the total demise of Tumblr is not far off.
Despite alienating much of its core user base, Tumblr appeared far more optimistic about its future. We might share in that optimism and wish Tumblr the best, but without porn who really cares?
