Twitch revises its guidelines on sexual harassment

The online streaming platform Twitch has revised its rules regarding sexual harassment.

In a statement, Twitch announced, "We are providing clarity to our sexual harassment policy and introducing a new AutoMod category aimed at flagging messages that might include sexual harassment."

The team clarified that the core policy remains mostly unchanged but the updates aim to make it more comprehensible.

Sexual harassment was described as "non-physical, sexually-related actions that make users feel uneasy, degraded, unsafe, or less willing to engage." Twitch emphasized, "Sexual harassment is unacceptable and harms our community. It can make individuals feel unsafe, disrespected, and discourage their participation on the platform. We strive for Twitch to be a safe and welcoming environment, and this requires clear guidelines on acceptable behavior."

The platform prohibits unsolicited comments, including those made with emojis or emotes, about someone's appearance or body, sexual proposals, sexual objectification, and negative remarks or attacks regarding perceived sexual activities or behaviors, regardless of gender.

Twitch further stated, "We do not allow the recording or distribution of intimate images or videos without consent, and such actions may be reported to law enforcement."

To support this policy, Twitch has enhanced its AutoMod tool to "proactively identify and limit the visibility of potentially inappropriate or offensive chat messages." If enabled by a streamer, AutoMod will automatically detect and hold these messages for moderator review before they are visible to other viewers.

The decision to approve or reject these messages lies with the moderators.

This update comes in the wake of accusations against prominent streamer Dr Disrespect, who allegedly engaged in inappropriate conversations with a minor on Twitch.

Guy "Dr Disrespect" Beahm recently confirmed that his ban from Twitch in 2020 occurred after the platform discovered he had messaged a minor in 2017, which he labeled "casual, mutual conversations that sometimes leaned towards inappropriate."

Due to these allegations, game studio Midnight Society has cut ties with its co-founder Beahm. Additionally, Turtle Beach has ended its collaboration with him, and his YouTube channel has been demonetized.

In May, Twitch reportedly disbanded its Safety Advisory Council. Last week, the platform reactivated Donald Trump's Twitch account.