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Social media site OnlyFans reverses plan to ban sexually explicit content – National Post

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Just last week the London-based site said it would ban explicit content as of Oct. 1, a decision forced in part because of pressure from ‘banking and payment services’

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(Bloomberg) — Social-media subscription service OnlyFans Ltd. reversed a decision to ban sexually explicit material, changing course after an uproar from creators and sex workers who had come to rely on the platform as a source of income.

Just last week the site said it would ban explicit content as of Oct. 1, shifting instead to a model that has increasingly relied on helping celebrities connect to their fan bases. That decision was forced in part because of pressure from “banking and payment services,” the London-based company had said.

In a tweet on Wednesday, OnlyFans said it’s “secured assurances necessary” to support its content creators and won’t go through with the previously announced policy change. “OnlyFans stands for inclusion and we will continue to provide a home for all creators,” the company said.

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The reversal comes one day after OnlyFans founder Tim Stokely pinned the initial decision on opposition it faced from banking service providers. Bank of New York Mellon Corp. “flagged and rejected” wire payments tied to the company, “making it difficult to pay our creators,” Stokely said in an interview with the Financial Times. The bank declined to comment to the paper.

Sex workers use OnlyFans to sell explicit content to their followers, and celebrities had piled on as a way to sell more traditional photos and videos to their own fan bases.

When the pandemic hit and people were forced indoors, many sex workers who previously earned their living performing in person turned to online shows. The company had planned to allow some nude photos and videos even after the ban, but that left creators questioning where OnlyFans would draw the line between what’s acceptable and what violates its rules.

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The company had held talks to raise new funding at a company valuation of more than $1 billion, Bloomberg News reported in June, though it doesn’t need the money. The company is profitable and had been on pace to generate more than $5 billion in sales this year, taking a 20 per cent cut of every payment sent to content creators. A major institutional investor, however, would lend legitimacy to a site increasingly known for adult content.

Now, several sex workers say they are reluctant to trust OnlyFans and would transition to other companies that offer similar services.

“They’ve lost a ton of trust,” said Mia Lily, a 19-year-old who was earning more than $20,000 a month on OnlyFans. “I won’t be going back. Most girls I know aren’t.”

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Savannah Solo, 23, has been selling access to content on OnlyFans since January 2020, and regrets not branching out to other platforms. “It’s my only source of income,” she said. “That’s a mistake I won’t be making again. I’ll be using different sites now.”

Even so, the potential opportunity of working on a leading platform in the market may prove too strong to ignore.

One performer who goes by Elle Squishy said there may be no choice, because many clients already have accounts with OnlyFans and might not bother entering all their credit card details in at another site.

“Even if we hate OnlyFans and will always be afraid they’ll pull this again, a lot of us are going to just pick where the money is at,” Squishy said.

Creator Erica Cherry said she would plan to upload all of her clips to another site, ready to promote “at a moment’s notice.” She questioned whether the whole thing was an elaborate stunt to get attention.

“My hope is that the voices of the sex-work community were heard by the banks,” Cherry said. “That would be the best outcome.”

©2021 Bloomberg L.P.

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CTV National News: Social media giants sued – CTV News

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CTV National News: Social media giants sued  CTV News

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India’s media – captured and censored

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Across almost every form of media in India – social, broadcast and print – Narendra Modi and the BJP hold sway.

With India amid a national election campaign, its news media is in sharp focus. Until recently it was believed that the sheer diversity of outlets ensured a range of perspectives, but now, India’s mainstream media has largely been co-opted by the Bharatiya Janata Party and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Just how did the media in India get to this point and what does it mean for the upcoming elections?

Featuring:

Ravish Kumar – Former Host, NDTV
Shashi Shekhar Vempati – Former CEO, Prasar Bharati
Pramod Raman – Chief Editor, MediaOne
Amy Kazmin – Former South Asia Bureau Chief, Financial Times
Meena Kotwal – Founder, The Mooknayak

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Social media lawsuit launched by Ontario school boards

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Premier Doug Ford says that lawsuits launched by four Ontario school boards against multiple social media platforms are “nonsense” and risk becoming a distraction to the work that really matters.

The school boards, including three in the Greater Toronto Area, have launched lawsuits seeking $4.5 billion in damages against Snapchat, TikTok, and Meta, the owner of both Facebook and Instagram, for creating products that they allege negligently interfere with student learning and have caused “widespread disruption to the education system.”

But at an unrelated news conference in Ottawa on Friday, Ford said that he “disagrees” with the legal action and worries it could take the focus away from “the core values of education.”

“Let’s focus on math, reading and writing. That is what we need to do, put all the resources into the kids,” he said. “What are they spending lawyers fees to go after these massive companies that have endless cash to fight this? Let’s focus on the kids, not this other nonsense that they are looking to fight in court.”

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Four separate but similar statements of claim were filed in Ontario’s Superior Court of JusticSocial media lawsuit launched by Ontario school boards pervasive problems such as distraction, social withdrawal, cyberbullying, a rapid escalation of aggression, and mental health challenges,” Colleen Russell-Rawlins, the director of education with the Toronto District School Board, said in a news release issued Thursday.

“It is imperative that we take steps to ensure the well-being of our youth. We are calling for measures to be implemented to mitigate these harms and prioritize the mental health and academic success of our future generation.”

The school boards are represented by Toronto-based law firm Neinstein LLP and the news release states that school boards “will not be responsible for any costs related to the lawsuit unless a successful outcome is reached.”

These lawsuits come as hundreds of school districts in the United States file similar suits.

“A strong education system is the foundation of our society and our community. Social media products and the changes in behaviour, judgement and attention that they cause pose a threat to that system and to the student population our schools serve,” Duncan Embury, the head of litigation at Neinstein LLP, said in the new release.

“We are proud to support our schools and students in this litigation with the goal of holding social media giants accountable and creating meaningful change.”

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