Twitch is replacing many of the experts who were previously on its Safety Advisory Council with Twitch Ambassadors, but who exactly this will be and whether they will be paid or not still remains unclear (via CNBC).
Originally, the Council, which was formed in 2020, consisted of nine industry experts, moderators, and streamers who would be consulted and offer advice on trust and safety issues related to nudity, banned users, and children, among other things. "It is composed of online safety experts and Twitch creators who have a deep understanding of Twitch, its content, and its community," Twitch's overview page says. "Each member of the council is carefully selected based on their familiarity with the Twitch community and their relevant personal and professional experiences."
Members include Emma Llansó, director of the Free Expression Project, Dr. Sameer Hinduja, co-director of the Cyberbullying Research Center, and Zizaran, Twitch Partner, among others listed on the membership page. However, it seems like Twitch no longer needs their expertise.
CNBC viewed an email sent to the members saying, "Looking ahead, the Safety Advisory Council will primarily be made up of individuals who serve as Twitch Ambassadors. Pursuant to section 5(a) of the SAC advisor Agreement, we are writing to provide you with notice of termination. This means that the second 2024 payment won’t be issued."
Twitch confirmed early this year that it had laid off over 500 employees, which came on top of an earlier round of more than 400 layoffs in 2023. According to a Twitch blog post, this was apparently because the "organisation is still meaningfully larger than it needs to be." So these departures haven't come entirely out of the blue, especially as Twitch declined to comment to CNBC whether the new members would be receiving any pay for this work. However, it did say in a statement to CNBC that the "new council members [can] offer fresh, diverse perspectives. With this format, we'll be able to pull in even more voices and perspectives."
It's not yet clear how this new Council will work and who will be on it, but hopefully, this change won't affect the safeguarding on the site too badly. Recent controversies seen on Twitch include the hot tub meta reaching new heights as streamers began to use their own bodies as green screens and Pokimane announcing she'll be leaving the site due to "so much manosphere, red pill bullshit."
