Q1 2022 Creator Coverage Engagement Program wrap-up

Final month, we shared an overview of the Coverage Staff’s work in 2021 and proposed a couple of new updates for the primary quarter of 2022. Due to your suggestions, we refined, improved, and finalized the coverage proposals. Learn on to study extra.

Suggestions on new initiatives

1. Creator Advocacy Initiative

We introduced that our Creator Coverage Engagement Program is increasing to incorporate quarterly updates about alternatives for creators to advocate in public boards for creator-first legal guidelines and insurance policies. Creators expressed optimism about this initiative’s future:

“Having the federal government acknowledge what we do as reliable work can be actually cool. It’s scary being part of the primary wave of a brand new trade generally and it could be nice if it was considered the identical method as a conventional enterprise.” — Creator (from the Creator Advocacy curiosity kind)

“I’m intrigued (by) how this creator advocacy initiative may probably develop to incorporate information in regards to the creator economic system and the way it impacts Patreon creators” — Creator (from the livestream suggestions survey)

“Thanks for advocating for us!! Undoubtedly would moderately be on the desk than on it!!” — Creator (from the Creator Advocacy Initiative curiosity kind)

Early themes we’ve heard from creators embrace points associated to mental property, funding and help for small companies, and the way the federal government could make it simpler to construct a enterprise as a inventive individual. This work continues to be in its infancy, and we’re desirous to develop it in collaboration with you. Please proceed to make use of the Creator Advocacy curiosity kind to share your tales.

2. Transparency Report

We additionally introduced that we’ll be publishing our first transparency report this yr to ship knowledge and context on a few of the matters you ask about most frequently, just like how we deal with unlawful, dangerous, or violative content material when it arises. We’re onerous at work on the report, which will probably be printed yearly, and are excited to share it with you quickly.

Suggestions on Proposed Q1 Coverage Updates

We repeatedly consider our insurance policies and enforcement to verify they proceed to help our neighborhood and deal with the dangers we see on the platform. This quarter we proposed updates to offer creators extra readability round two sections of our Neighborhood Pointers that assist preserve Patreon a protected platform. Beneath we share the finalized updates, as properly how creator suggestions knowledgeable the ultimate product.

I. Hate speech

Our Neighborhood Pointers make it clear that we don’t enable hate speech on Patreon or in initiatives funded by means of the platform. Any speech that assaults individuals based mostly on their protected traits is violating and contradictory to the inclusive and supportive setting we search to foster. Listed below are some updates we made with creator help:

• We up to date our listing of protected traits to raised replicate and shield the broad neighborhood of those that use Patreon (updates in daring):
  • “. . .race, ethnicity, nationwide origin, faith, intercourse, gender identification, sexual orientation, incapacity, severe medical situations, caste, or immigration standing.”
• Creators requested that we make clear that protected political speech and violative hate speech will not be the identical (“I believe it’s completely important that. . .you clearly make clear that sincere and respectful dialog about controversial matters and positing concepts and theories that go opposite to ‘accepted’ norms is to be protected because the important constructing block of inventive progress and exploration.” — Creator from the livestream suggestions survey). Certainly, there could be a fantastic line there, and we need to be clear about how we deal with the grey areas. That’s why we added to the Neighborhood Pointers a few of the questions we ask when evaluating content material for doable hate speech violations, resembling:
  • “Is there a name for violence towards somebody based mostly on a attribute like these listed above?
  • Does the creator use dehumanizing language when speaking about individuals based mostly on one of many above traits?
  • Is the creator utilizing racial slurs or unfavorable depictions of somebody based mostly on a attribute like these listed above?
  • Does the creator mock or deny the expertise of victims of hate crimes such because the Holocaust?
  • Is the creator focusing on individuals based mostly on their immigration standing in a discriminatory method or just discussing immigration coverage?
  • Is the assertion reliable criticism of a State, establishment, or perception or does the context make it clear that the person is utilizing code phrases or proxies to assault individuals based mostly on the above traits?”

II. Harmful organizations
Creators requested specifics round which organizations would qualify as harmful. (“Is there some form of licensed listing of organizations which are harmful?” — Creator from the livestream suggestions survey). In a brand new part of the Neighborhood Pointers referred to as “Violent, Prison, and Hateful Organizations,” we specified examples of the types of harmful teams we’re referring to, together with however not restricted to:

• “. . .hate organizations resembling fascist, white supremacist and white nationalist teams, anti-Muslim and anti-Semitic organizations, and anti-LGBTQ+ teams.”

Final month we additionally proposed including a caveat, within the spirit of redemption, that former members of harmful organizations who’ve since disavowed that membership could fund Patreon initiatives. As a result of creators enthusiastically supported this carveout, we added language within the “Violent, Prison, and Hateful Organizations” part of our Pointers that claims:

• “We perceive individuals’s ideas and affiliations can change over time. We’ll at all times pay attention when a person leaves a harmful or hateful group and needs to fund a guidelines-abiding inventive venture by means of Patreon. We’ll think about renouncements of previous actions and affiliations on a case-by-case foundation. Into account would be the time previous since a person’s renouncement, whether or not they’ve renounced each the group and its ideology and, lastly, what they plan to fund on Patreon.”

Further Suggestions

Creators additionally recommended that we be extra clear through the livestream Q&A that creators can ask about any and each Patreon coverage, moderately than simply the coverage proposals from the quarter at hand. (“I would really like future coverage livestreams to make clear that questions could be directed to each coverage Patreon at present has, in addition to insurance policies the Coverage Staff will probably be addressing as a part of that livestream.” — Creator from the livestream suggestions survey). That’s a terrific level, and one which we’ll incorporate subsequent quarter and past.

Till Subsequent Time

Thanks, creators. Your collaboration and considerate suggestions undeniably strengthens Patreon coverage. We look ahead to one other spherical of the Creator Coverage Engagement Program subsequent quarter. Till then, don’t hesitate to succeed in out to the Coverage Staff with ideas or questions at CreatorPolicy@Patreon.com.