Gag Order on Sexuality in Social Media—A Critical Reading From the Perspective
of Sexual Rights
: Paalanen Tommi, Spišák Sanna, Pirjatanniemi Elina, Paasonen Susanna, Vihlman Maria
: Alain Giami and Erick Janssen
: Congress of the World Association for Sexual Health
: 2022
: International Journal of Sexual Health
: 25th Congress of the World Association for Sexual Health (WAS) and SASHA (South African Sexual Health Association)
: A50
: A51
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/19317611.2022.2017618
: https://worldsexualhealth.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/was2021abstractbook.pdf
Many social media platforms have wide and opaque limits concerning visual sexual content, and the limits tend to affect sexual talk and a multitude of keywords as well. The limits do not only affect illegal or disturbing content but curb individual sexual expression, diversity of identities, sexuality education, advocacy and professional sexology as well. A50 ABSTRACTS Focusing on Facebook, in particular, this talk proposes an alternative perspective for handling various expressions of sexuality in social media platforms by exploring the wide-ranging ramifications of community standards and commercial content moderation policies based on them. Given that sexuality is an integral part of human life and as such protected by fundamental human rights and sexual rights, we endorse the freedom of expression as an essential legal and ethical tool for supporting wellbeing, visibility, and nondiscrimination. We suggest that social media content policies should be guided by the interpretive lens of fundamental human rights and sexual rights. Furthermore, we propose that social media content policies inclusive of the option to express consent to access sexual content are more ethical and just than those structurally erasing nudity and sexual display.