While implementation is taking far longer than the Twitch team thought it would, the platform will soon see hundreds of new tags to help you find livestreams that best match your interests.
Twitch Finally Adds Its Most Highly-Requested Tags
Twitch has announced via blog post that before the end of May, you will be able to browse through over 350 new tags on the site related to gender, sexual orientation, race, nationality, ability, mental health, and more.
The list of tags includes "transgender," "Black," "disabled," "veteran," and "Vtuber" amongst many others. Twitch says it'll also be removing references to "ally" from the LGBTQIA+ tag to form a standalone "ally" tag instead.
"These additions won’t change how tagging works and are completely optional. They simply give creators more choices," the post reads.
The new list of tags was created in partnership with GLAAD, The Trevor Project, AbleGamers, SpecialEffect, and other experts focused on the progress of underrepresented racial and ethnic groups, LGBTQIA+, disabled, and marginalized communities.
Though Twitch has worked with these organizations is try and be as inclusive as possible, it understands that there are inevitably going to be tags that some users will be disappointed to find were not added.
You can always leave comments on UserVoice, Twitch's online feedback and suggestions forum, to let the team know what you want to see on the platform.
Every week, the most popular (highly upvoted) suggestions will be added to the tag list as long as they follow the Community Guidelines.
Why Is Twitch Only Adding These Tags Now?
Twitch admits that when it designed the tag system, it was for creators to describe what they were streaming—not the kind of people they were or what causes they supported and stood for.
The company has maintained that stance for some time, but is now saying "we were wrong."
When viewers talk about why they love Twitch, they don’t just talk about the content. They talk about creators, what they care about, and the communities they have built. By expanding tags, we are giving creators more ways to be discovered and viewers more ways to find communities that they want to call home.
Twitch says that the one exception within the old system was the LGBTIA+ tag, purely because of the overwhelming support the community showed for it. But now, the streaming platform wants its tags to reflect and celebrate the diversity of its userbase.
Back in August 2020, a Polygon article mentioned that Twitch was "resistant" to adding the "transgender" tag out of fear of harassment. We don't know how true that claim is, but we're nevertheless happy to see smaller communities finally get tags of their own.
Image Credit: Daniel Benavides/Wikimedia Commons
