A body painter says she was wrongfully suspended from Twitch for nudity despite the platform's rules providing exceptions for art
- Body painter and Twitch personality MizzyRose claims she received a one-day suspension from the streaming platform for posting content of "an insufficiently covered body."
- The 22-year-old contested the suspension on Twitter, arguing that her content is covered by the platform guidelines' "contextual exception" allowing body art.
- The tweet received mixed reactions — and sparked conversation about a pattern of behavior that women face in the live streaming space.
- Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.
Body painter MizzyRose, as she's known among her 141,000 followers, frequently transforms herself with paint and shares the results on the streaming platform Twitch.
Over the weekend, she says, she received a one-day suspension from the platform for posting content that featured "a nude or insufficiently covered body."
The 22-year-old artist from British Columbia took to Twitter to contest the suspension, posting the alleged notification from Twitch and photos of the content in question.
"TWITCH HAS BANNED ME! IDC IF ITS FOR A DAY, IT STILL AFFECTS MY ACCOUNT," she wrote in the post. "I DID NOTHING WRONG. Someone is wrongfully banning on Twitch's end."
Twitch suspensions, MizzyRose explained, can have implications for a streamer's monetization options.
"Being banned at all, even for just a day impacts my account because it leaves a strike on your channel," she told Insider. "A strike can impact a partnership. I applied to be a partner before I was wrongfully banned. I'm [now] scared about what they will say or even if they'll accept me as a partner."
MizzyRose went on to post photos of Twitch's "situational" and "contextual exceptions" to its guidelines regarding nudity.
One such exception is "body art," which guidelines permit in streams "focused on actively creating content (i.e. painting)."
Full chest coverage, the guidelines state, is not required "but those who present as women must completely cover their nipples & areola with a layer of non-transparent clothing or a paint & latex combination." Additionally, the coverage "must be applied before streaming begins, not on-stream."
The Twitch personality, who has been posting body painting videos for the last two months, added that she's been affiliated with the platform for five years — and her content creation is a "full-time job" and her "livelihood."
The tweet thread has since sparked a debate about Twitch's guidelines, nudity, and who belongs on the platform.
Some commenters jumped to MizzyRose's defense, arguing that her content adhered to the platform's policies.
"You were completely covering any visible parts that were deemed unfit for Twitch in all the streams I've watched," one commenter wrote. "Hopefully you will finish the paint you were in the middle of, was looking amazing!"
"That banning was total BS. Everything was within Twitch's own guidelines," another added.
The post also sparked backlash.
"Wrongfully banning??" one critic tweeted. "This is the most naive statement that can be made with regard to what kind of content you knowingly were live streaming on a predominantly gaming platform."
"You're literally naked find a new hobby," another wrote.
Others questioned the sexualization of body art.
"To be honest the fixation Americans have regarding nudity is crazy. I live in a culture where nudity is not inherently sexual," one commenter tweeted. "If you watch tv shows made in my country you most likely will see nipples etc. and it is not seen as sexual."
MizzyRose isn't the first body painter to run into trouble on the platform.
Italian Twitch streamer Alis, who went by AlisPrayer and live-streamed body painting videos, says she was banned indefinitely from the platform on April 8.
Feeling "devastated" by the ban, she took her frustrations to Twitter.
Her post received over 2,000 likes and hundreds of comments from fans and fellow body painters.
Losing a Twitch channel, she says, has serious financial and emotional implications – particularly during the pandemic and a widespread quarantine.
"I really love [body painting]. It is a true passion," she told Insider. "Losing my channel without a good explanation is devastating. My channel is my only income right now."
Other women who were censured for their content on the platform are sharing their stories online — and some are accusing Twitch users of targeting women.
One Twitch personality who goes by Velvet tweeted that since receiving a temporary ban in 2019, she tries to be "extra careful about [her] clothing."
After Velvet's tweet received a response from a user threatening to report and get "talentless thots perm banned," Twitch personality Kaceytron, who boasts over 500,000 followers on the platform, called out what she said was misogyny running rampant in the live streaming community.
"There are literally misogynists going around TARGETING WOMEN trying to take away their livelihood," she tweeted.
MizzyRose then responded to Kaceytron's tweet, adding that women are frequently "sexualized" and "discriminated against" on the platform — which she says is made worse by unclear rules.
Going forward, MizzyRose says, she wants to see changes on the platform.
"I wish for the staff to all be on the same page and fully know their terms of service," she said. "I would also like to see more detailed explanations as to why someone gets banned to they can 'improve' instead of being scared and not knowing why they were banned."
Ultimately, she feels, streamers deserve more from Twitch.
"The streamers are who run their website, the people who provide their income," she said. "We should be treated better."
Twitch did not immediately return Insider's request for comment.
Read more:
Drake just signed a multiyear deal to produce rap battles on a live-streaming platform