The streamer Benjamin “DrLupo” Lupo switched from Twitch to YouTube in 2021, but is still active on Amazon’s platform. Over the weekend, he wrote a sentence in the chat of the well-known streamer Ninja, which led Twitch to temporarily ban him.
What exactly was the streamer banned for? On May 15, the streamer DrLupo announced via Twitter that he was banned on Twitch. The reason was an “unsolicited sexual advance.” The ban was supposed to last for 7 days.
DrLupo provided the explanation for the ban himself. He had written in Tyler “Ninja” Blevins’ chat the phrase “Sit on my face.” This statement is often associated with a sexual act.
However, the remark was meant to be understood as a joke among streamers in this context.
Ninja’s wife, Jessice Blevins, responded to the ban by also writing “Sit on my face” in the chat and then asking on Twitter if she could say that as his wife (via Twitter).
Why is the ban a problem? Although the ban lasted only a few hours and DrLupo is no longer actively streaming on Twitch, the ban sparked some discussions:
- On one hand, there are complaints about how quickly people are banned for chat messages, while some streamers get away with offenses in livestreams.
- On the other hand, the bans do not recognize context or irony. This is especially problematic when these happen automatically.
Twitch’s ban policy continues to spark discussions
What is the problem with the bans? Twitch has a very peculiar line when it comes to bans. Pornographic material and sexual harassment are actively pursued, yet they often go overboard:
- The Twitch streamer Forsen accidentally showed a picture of a young woman and a horse, which was pushed onto him by viewers. For this, he received a permanent ban immediately.
- Also, the then 16-year-old Clix was initially permanently banned for showing a wrong picture in the stream.
Both bans have since been lifted, but a sour aftertaste remains. Because these bans often seem arbitrary, especially when considering that there are streamers on Twitch who deliberately push the boundaries of Twitch.
For example, a streamer was banned for only 3 days, even though she performed a sex show and showed her genitals. While this may also have been an accident, it seems significantly more severe compared to what Forsen, Clix, and DrLupo did – and did not warrant a permanent ban.
Back in 2021, MeinMMO editor Schuhmann took a closer look at Twitch’s ban policy and wrote an opinion that is still relevant today:
