Hot tub streamers on Twitch continue to rise in popularity, but many are discovering that Twitch has banned the mention of hot tubs on their official channel. Mentioning hot tubs will result in the message not being posted because of “conflicts with the channel’s moderation settings.” Why did Twitch ban just one word though? The hot tub meta is a lot to unpack.
The “Hot tub meta” has become a point of contention for many Twitch viewers. Hot tub streamers, who host streams while sitting in hot tubs — or, more commonly, inflattable kiddy pools in their living rooms — have drawn the ire of some viewers that consider them low effort and sexually exploitative.
Technically, these hot tub streams don’t break any rules. Twitch allows streamers to wear swimsuits in appropriate situations, and a hot tub is an appropriate place to wear one. The streams are in the “Just Chatting” category, however, and some streamers lean towards more NSFW content. Although hot tub streaming doesn’t go against any guidelines, Twitch has banned mention of ‘hot tub’ on their official channel.
On a recent Reddit post about banning hot tub, commentators agreed that Twitch is avoiding the subject and ignoring what is going on. Other users are expressing their opinion on the topic, pointing out that it shouldn’t really matter. When you go to Twitch, you have no obligation to watch these hot tub streamers. The streamers have a fanbase that enjoys the content, but nobody is forcing you to watch it too.
Last year, we saw Twitch ban the N-word, after much consideration. From this, we can see how Twitch is apprehensive about making decisions like this. For now, hot tub streamers are here to stay, even if Twitch doesn’t want you talking about them on official channels.
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