Twitch TV

[Balletomane2021]

Ok, so now Twitch aka the site where all your teens and tweens go on to watch gamers play games have shown their full support for 'hot tub streamers', i.e. streamers who wear bikinis, promote their OnlyFans, and do other sexually suggestive things on stream (yes we're supposed to be consoled that it's not full-on porn as nudity still isn't allowed), via giving them a dedicated 'hot tub' section. No more grey area, it's now accepted and legitimised on one of the biggest streaming site on the internet (one where you get a free subscription to one channel if you have Amazon Prime). Bravo! Another push towards the normalisation of sex work and the objectification of women!

It's so, so depressing.

Is there any chance that there's going to be a backlash against all this? That we're going to get a generation of young women standing up against it all?

Because sadly, the only thing I see is young girls trying to opt out of being a woman altogether, which hardly solves the issue.

Hey OP,
Long time gamer here (and fully functioning adult, I promise!)
This is a really current topic in the gaming communities I frequent at the moment. Have you seen any of the hot tub streams and similar? They're fucking AWFUL. In many of them, viewers donate "tips" for the mostly naked woman to write the donator's name on her body. It's beyond inappropriate and grimy. Twitch's response is predictable evasive and pathetic.
Refreshingly, the vast majority of men I know through gaming think it's fairly grim too. I hope it opens up some good discussions on the subject. There have been some fairly awful reports from female game streamers (not hot tub streamers) reporting horrific bullying/sexual assaults and even rape by male gamers they've met online and in real life. Women's safety and presence in gaming circles has become such an issue recently - this shit makes it harder to have those discussions, as many men's go-to response is essentially "how do you expect to be treated as equals when you get your tits out on stream for money, women?!"
@EdgeOfACoin I don't anticipate a backlash sorry, as there are far too many female voices claiming this is empowering, yada yada yada

I've heard some reasonably high profile (non hot tub) female streamers speak out against it too, albeit to much criticism. Unfortunately, some of the biggest male streamers on the site (some of which have very young viewer bases) along with a good amount of female streamers, seem to have bought into the idea that all this stuff is 'empowering' and have all been lauding the move and joking on stream about how they now have a one stop section if they're in the mood to get off. It's bloody grim.

Just asked teen son if he uses Twitch, he thinks it's grim too and wouldn't watch. He said "there's plenty of the internet for that sort of stuff already why is it spreading into gaming I'm not interested".

Is there any chance that there's going to be a backlash against all this? That we're going to get a generation of young women standing up against it all?

Perhaps the number of young women deciding that in fact they are not women, or they are non-binary, "it" "they" "bun" is a form of backlash.

"there's plenty of the internet for that sort of stuff already why is it spreading into gaming I'm not interested".
That's the most common rejection of it I've come across too. I completely agree.