LGBT+ Streamers Voice Disappointment Over Twitch's Pride Month Support

Several LGBT+ streamers who participated in Twitch's Pride Month celebrations have voiced their disappointment over the lack of support from the platform. Twitch's attempt at supporting the community involved creating a team of LGBT+ streamers from the UK and Ireland who were featured in a specific Pride Month "shelf" on the platform's front page throughout June. However, this feature was situated beneath other recommendation feeds and received minimal promotion on social media. The streamers believe that Twitch should intensify its support for the LGBT+ community not just during Pride Month but all year round.

Despite participating in the campaign, the streamers did not notice a significant increase in viewership. Twitch Ambassador, ReadySetBen, expressed disappointment, comparing the campaign to previous years that saw more robust promotional efforts, such as billboards and larger social media campaigns. Another Twitch Ambassador, Ebonix, voiced her discontent, questioning the effectiveness of a front-page slot and urging Twitch to focus more on creating a safe space for the community. Like many of her colleagues, she believes that support for the LGBT+ community should not be restricted to specific months but should be an ongoing effort.

While the streamers recognized some benefits, such as networking opportunities, they agreed that the Pride Month “shelf” was too low on the homepage, which negatively affected visibility. They suggested that Twitch could improve by making the Pride Month section more prominent, reintroducing billboards, utilizing the Twitch blog for interviews, and giving all members a chance at a front page slot. Warwick, a Twitch Partner, also suggested that Twitch should boldly support Pride Month and not shy away from backlash.

Despite the criticisms, the streamers acknowledged that Twitch had made strides in supporting the LGBT+ community. Psyche, another Twitch Ambassador, noted that Twitch is "doing more than they ever have before". ReadySetBen mentioned that Twitch is "consistently learning" and recognized the challenges of providing support given the size of the platform. Twitch's director of community marketing and production, Mary Kish, admitted that the company has faced challenges in supporting Pride Month but is committed to improving. She revealed that they are considering feedback on how to make the Pride Month shelf more visible and better support creators.

While Twitch's efforts during Pride Month may have fallen short of expectations, the criticisms voiced by the LGBT+ streamers offer valuable insight into how the platform can better support its diverse community in the future. It remains to be seen how Twitch will incorporate this feedback into its future efforts, but one thing is clear: the LGBT+ community on Twitch is passionate and committed, and they're looking for a platform to match that commitment.