View Full Version : Is Blogger Cleaning House?
Teddy
08-13-2009, 02:21 PM
I was checking links today and noticed that several were gone. One big category affected was candid shots. One of my favorite sites (maintained by a guy who took photos of guys on the street) had his Flickr account deleted.
Another question, are Blogger, Flickr and Google part of the same company?
gaydemon
08-13-2009, 02:29 PM
I've seen it happen every few weeks, so I think they do it in bulk. Unfortunately what they remove seems very random.
archer
08-16-2009, 09:36 AM
i was going to post on just this issue... tho it relates to blogspot specifically. iw as going through my bookmarks and noticed a pile of some gay blogs had been removed for 'violating terms of service' whatever that means.
some nice blogs have disappeared and i don't recall any of them being remotely risque(beyond naked men, that is ;) )
stableboys
08-16-2009, 03:02 PM
i was going to post on just this issue... tho it relates to blogspot specifically. iw as going through my bookmarks and noticed a pile of some gay blogs had been removed for 'violating terms of service' whatever that means.
some nice blogs have disappeared and i don't recall any of them being remotely risque(beyond naked men, that is ;) )
Why use Blogspot when there are some other great free hosted blog sites you can use?
Teddy
08-17-2009, 09:10 AM
Blogspot is so appealing because it is so easy to use and (often) integrates with popular tools via a "click for blogger" button.
That being said, ease of use doesn't mean much if they periodically delete your blogs and you have to start from scratch again.
If Blogger is anything like Google Adwords, a blog passing a review will depend on who reviews it. I believe that there is some cultural discrimination against gay blogs by some of their "customer support" centers that are based in conservative countries.
i was going to post on just this issue... tho it relates to blogspot specifically. iw as going through my bookmarks and noticed a pile of some gay blogs had been removed for 'violating terms of service' whatever that means.
some nice blogs have disappeared and i don't recall any of them being remotely risque(beyond naked men, that is ;) )
I also observed the same thing all of the sudden lately, mentioned it on another thread on Gaydemon.
Teddy has another good point about the bias factor - the person(s) or places that are reviewing and making the final decisions. It shouldn't be discriminatory, but what's new in the world.
I thought it was because blogger user terms specifically state that adult blogs cannot be monetized. But that may or may not be the reason for the disappearance of some blogs.
Teddy
08-17-2009, 11:31 AM
They are probably removing some monetized sites, but there are some non-monetized sites being taken down as well. One was a blog with photos, taken by the site owner, of hot guys he saw on the street. So, no nudity and no sex (other than dirty language). Another was pics of naked guys in public. Again, non-monetized.
There isn't much rhyme or reason to it. There are some adult blogs on blogger than have been around for years and have so much content they have overflow on a second site.
I was talking to another guy who had his Picasa (another Google/Blogger partner) account deleted without any warning. It just had non-nude/non-sexual photos of guys. It killed his blog because he doesn't have anywhere to store photos.
Eh. What are you gonna do?! One of the common warnings I've seen on the adult boards is not to use Blogger. Probably for these very reasons.
Teddy,
Just curious if he given any specific explanation why his Picasa account was deleted?
Guess it doesn't matter now.
dirkpeddler
08-17-2009, 12:07 PM
They are probably removing some monetized sites, but there are some non-monetized sites being taken down as well. One was a blog with photos, taken by the site owner, of hot guys he saw on the street. So, no nudity and no sex (other than dirty language). Another was pics of naked guys in public. Again, non-monetized.
There isn't much rhyme or reason to it. There are some adult blogs on blogger than have been around for years and have so much content they have overflow on a second site.
I was talking to another guy who had his Picasa (another Google/Blogger partner) account deleted without any warning. It just had non-nude/non-sexual photos of guys. It killed his blog because he doesn't have anywhere to store photos.
Eh. What are you gonna do?! One of the common warnings I've seen on the adult boards is not to use Blogger. Probably for these very reasons.
I think what a lot of people using those storage or blog sites don't realize is that when they post 'amateur' or any other pictures of people in the street, nude or not, their content/blog will eventually be deleted since they most likely do not have a model release for the content. If someone complaints about their picture being displayed it is in violation and instead of removing the image in question, they just simply remove all.
Teddy
08-17-2009, 12:10 PM
Correction, it was his Flickr account. He lost over 3000 photos. No explanation. 3000 photos. He has them stored locally, but I can't even imagine sitting down in front of the computer to upload them all again.
Regarding model release forms, I always thought (for non-commercial purposes like his blog) the rule was that candid photos of people on the street are not covered and it isn't an invasion of privacy since it is in public. I'm probably talking out of my ass on this, but I'm fairly certain this isn't made up. :)
dirkpeddler
08-18-2009, 08:06 AM
Correction, it was his Flickr account. He lost over 3000 photos. No explanation. 3000 photos. He has them stored locally, but I can't even imagine sitting down in front of the computer to upload them all again.
Regarding model release forms, I always thought (for non-commercial purposes like his blog) the rule was that candid photos of people on the street are not covered and it isn't an invasion of privacy since it is in public. I'm probably talking out of my ass on this, but I'm fairly certain this isn't made up. :)
I'm not 100% sure about this but in some way every blog or 'free' site makes someone money(Adsense, other ads in the sidebar, host, etc.) and using private peoples images without their permission, to me, is an invasion of privacy, special on niche related sites (being displayed ona gay themed site might not be everyone's preference of coming out). If this was not the case those sites would not feel the need to include a warning that if you find your image/video on their site and you do not want it there, contact them (usually without a way of contacting them) and it will be immediately removed.
I'm not 100% sure about this but in some way every blog or 'free' site makes someone money(Adsense, other ads in the sidebar, host, etc.) and using private peoples images without their permission, to me, is an invasion of privacy, special on niche related sites (being displayed ona gay themed site might not be everyone's preference of coming out). If this was not the case those sites would not feel the need to include a warning that if you find your image/video on their site and you do not want it there, contact them (usually without a way of contacting them) and it will be immediately removed.
Yes, that inclusion is one of another of many that are flourishing. I think it's the same old thing. People who are serious (or practical) about their work do some research. Others throw up blogs and sites based only on what they see on other websites, without asking and researching. The assumption is if other people are doing it, then that's how it's done. This might explain (but does not excuse) the naive webmaster. But obviously there are many who think they're just going to get away with something. I also agree there has to be some kind of moral responsibility.
Hmm, model releases were mentioned. For whatever this is worth, model releases are now sometimes required for artists submitting paintings to some museum shows, catching a lot of artist off guard. Sticking to photography, lets say in NYC, you have to be careful. I've known people with just a SLR camera being approached by store owners across a wide street, like the avenues in Manhattan. Of course, tourists (and photographers) use their pocket cameras everywhere all day. But it'll be interesting if and how this affects what galleries will show, and what artists make in the future. I think the reason why these concerns are growing in the art community (where you used to be able to do almost anything) is specifically because of the internet and the issues raised on this thread (porn or not).
I have to reconsider my #12 post...
I was discussing the worst abuses. It really is a sticky issue, because if you are taking a pic in a street, and that street or gathering is filled with people...depends. It may be OK for reasons Teddy explained. But if one of those people in the pic, especially prominent in the pic, discovered it, could be a problem.
dirkpeddler
08-18-2009, 10:35 PM
I have to reconsider my #12 post...
I was discussing the worst abuses. It really is a sticky issue, because if you are taking a pic in a street, and that street or gathering is filled with people...depends. It may be OK for reasons Teddy explained. But if one of those people in the pic, especially prominent in the pic, discovered it, could be a problem.
Well another thing that could prove the issue with privacy is that even tv programs, are starting to blur out people in programs that they do not have their consent of use of their image for.
Another great warning on all those 'amateur' sites, porn or not, is that they collect the images from the internet and believe them to be in the public domain. There is no such thing as the public domain.....
gaydemon
08-19-2009, 01:24 AM
Well another thing that could prove the issue with privacy is that even tv programs, are starting to blur out people in programs that they do not have their consent of use of their image for.
Another great warning on all those 'amateur' sites, porn or not, is that they collect the images from the internet and believe them to be in the public domain. There is no such thing as the public domain.....
I've started to notice that here in the UK as well.
I think that blog owners using bloggers is surviving due to the masses of people having blogs on there. Google / Blogger simply cannot keep up. I clearly see that at times on BestMaleBLogs, blog owners who's blogs get shut down will just open another one straight away.
Well another thing that could prove the issue with privacy is that even tv programs, are starting to blur out people in programs that they do not have their consent of use of their image for.
Another great warning on all those 'amateur' sites, porn or not, is that they collect the images from the internet and believe them to be in the public domain. There is no such thing as the public domain.....
good point. I also see now that some shows (like home and garden shows) are actually blurring the art on the walls, too. I really do wonder what this will lead to, what understandings will be reached on this issue in time. I think among other factors, society is learning the difference between having some new gadgets to play with and what it really means to live in a world with this new digital technology. That is, we have the gadgets but we still don't understand what they mean, how to use them responsibly.
Teddy
08-19-2009, 07:34 AM
I'll have to pay closer attention to TV. I know they used to blur out people if the topic was sensitive. For instance, a show about how America is the fattest country in the world might show big butts from the waist down or with faces blurred. I wonder if it is the same thing or whether it is general topics as well (e.g. weather outside? it's sunny!)
Imagine if they had to blur the people in that iconic photo of the sailor kissing the woman after WWII. :)
I just found another great blog that was shut down. I feel so horrible for them because it was a great site with lots of photos and lots of traffic. All that hard work gone!
I just found another great blog that was shut down. I feel so horrible for them because it was a great site with lots of photos and lots of traffic. All that hard work gone!
Honestly, I do, too very much, Teddy. Some of these people really are just being creative, and sharing thoughts, things. That's really important. Of course, I have mixed feelings...because ripping people off is horrible, too, and rightfully illegal. Something has to be worked out so people can express themselves like blogs are supposed to offer, without causing any harm to others who are in business or not.
Keyword Geek
09-11-2009, 03:49 AM
Why use Blogspot when there are some other great free hosted blog sites you can use?
I totally agree.
I totally agree.
I think it just works out that way. Blogspot is just so popular, people go right to it maybe without thinking. Plus their friends might have sites with it, or they may like going to other Blogger sites. It's so easy, if I recall, on any Blogger site there is a link somewhere to make your own site.