Ning is pro-freedom, and porn agnostic

Filed under: Internet, Blogging, Web services, Social Software

Ning is pro-freedom, and porn agnostic

by Kristin Shoemaker Jan 5th 2008

Marc Andreessen of Ning is our hero. Ning, the online platform that allows users to create and maintain their own social networks, seems to have a few naughtier communities its midst. We'd be more shocked to hear it didn't, quite frankly. This is the internet, after all.

Some do find it surprising, however. Enough people, in fact, that Andreessen issued a statement on his blog today.

Andreessen's response is calm and well-argued. The short version: People who violate the terms of service will be dealt with accordingly. People who do things that are outright illegal will be reported to the authorities. He isn't, as he puts it, "pro-porn" but is "pro-freedom."

The Ning blog outlines a little bit about the "Red Light District." Adult-oriented sites must have warning pages, and must not appear in the search results on Ning.com. Additional tips are given on keeping non-adult sites free of racier material.

Interestingly enough, some of the high-traffic sites that Valleywag pegged as being pornographic simply aren't. (We will warn you some are, so if you're not supposed to be checking out that type of site for whatever reason, don't.) The most noticeable mis-categorization: GirlonGirl, a site where you can vote for the sexiest (fully clothed) girl. The other? Pomoworld, which looks a bit like Pornoworld if you squint. It's dedicated to a post-modernistic lifestyle.

Cheers to Andreessen and Ning for taking a position on the issue, and explaining that position like a rational (dare we say it?) adult.

[via blog.pmarca.com]

Tags: internet, Marc Andreessen, MarcAndreessen, ning, porn, social networks, SocialNetworks, terms of service, TermsOfService

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