Google is banning sexually explicit material on its Blogger platform. In an announcement posted on its website, the search giant said that users will no longer be able to ‘publicly share images and videos that are sexually explicit or show graphic nudity on Blogger’ as of 23 March.
However, Google will still allow nudity with the caveat that the content ‘offers a substantial public benefit, for example in artistic, educational, documentary, or scientific contexts.’
What about the existing blogs? If your current blog has any ‘sexually explicit or graphic nude’ images or video (i.e. porn), it will be made private. Google won’t delete any of your content, no one but you (the owner or admin) will be able to see your blog and people with whom you have shared the site.
If the blog was created before 23 March 2015, and contains content that violates the new policy, the admin will have to remove the violating content to save the blog from being made private. In case someone is still keen on posting sexually explicit or graphic nude images on Blogger, it will not be visible to others. If both the options don’t fit with your plans, you can ditch Blogger and search for a new platform to blog.
Google warned that it’s going to be especially strict with new blogs. “For any blogs created after 23 March 2015, we may remove the blog or take other action if it includes content that is sexually explicit or shows graphic nudity as explained in our content policy,” Google warned.
The move comes after Google in 2013 began cracking down on adult ads on Blogger. The platform now strictly prohibits the monetisation of adult content, meaning you can’t start a blog on the site to make money off adult content.