altCensored, a platform that archives videos that have been censored or limited by YouTube, has been booted by the fan-funding platform Patreon for “hate speech.”
The platform has received around 500,000 unique monthly visitors over the last year, according to estimates based on web analytics company SimilarWeb and altCensored’s server logs.
And altCensored had turned to Patreon to help cover its web hosting costs.
“We depended on Patreon to mainly cover around $100 a month in hosting,” altCensored told Reclaim The Net. “We are just trying to document removed material from YouTube and cover our hosting costs as we do it.”
But in an email to the platform, Patreon accused altCensored of violating its community guidelines on hate speech and alleged that altCensored had hosted content that propagates “negative stereotypes or segregational content towards protected communities.”
The email doesn’t point to any specific videos or cite any specific examples of how altCensored allegedly violated these hate speech rules.
altCensored said it hasn’t appealed the ban yet but is “not optimistic about reversing their decision.”
While alternative fan funding platforms and tools exist, it’s often difficult for creators and sites to attract equivalent levels of donations through these alternatives.
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Patreon’s deplatforming of altCensored follows Facebook blocking image previews on links to altCensored last year.
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