Substack's Content Guidelines and Moderation

Substack says it applies moderation "in moderation." But it has also said more about what it will or won't allow.

Jack Broughton’s list of boxing rules from 1743. Boxing is analogous to publishing or opposing controversial content. Rule VII is a “hands-off” rule – like Substack’s general approach to content moderation. [Since Substack’s posts on content moderation begin with a relevant old-time graphic, mine does too.]

Maybe you like Substack’s opinions on free speech and against censorship.

Or maybe you feel that Substack should restrain harmful content.

Either way – and whether you write on Substack or have concerns about what you read¹ – you might want to know what Substack’s rules are.²

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Perhaps the most significant statement of Substack’s view on content moderation is:

All things in moderation – including moderation

In other words, Substack may moderate content, but will do so moderately.

Or, to put it another way (as Substack has done), Substack has a

hands-off approach to content moderation

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“Moderation in moderation” or “hands-off approach” is a general principle, like “freedom of speech” or “anti-censorship.” For some content, Substack has more specific information on what’s allowed or not allowed.

Whether you’re publishing something or objecting to a publication, you’ll probably want some familiarity with Substack’s guidelines.

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Everyone who signs up to publish on Substack agrees to a Publishing Agreement. The agreement includes, among other things, Content Guidelines.

The Content Guidelines cover several categories:

• Legal 

• In General 

• Hate 

• Private information 

• Plagiarism

• Impersonation 

• People restricted from making money on Substack³

• Harmful and illegal activities

• Spam and phishing

• Nudity, porn, erotica

• Comments

The Content Guidelines aren’t long. You can quickly read them in full. Like any part of the Publisher Agreement, they may be revised – so you might want to check them from time to time.

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Substack published interpretations of the Content Guidelines in a March 2021 blog post on content moderation. These interpretations elaborated on types of content Substack doesn’t allow:

• Spam or phishing

• Harassment or threats

• Doxxing

• Hate

• Impersonation

• Plagiarism

• Porn or sexually exploitative content

Like the Content Guidelines, these interpretations are short and worth reading.

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Substack has published four blog posts with statements about content moderation. These posts and (in my view) relevant quotes are, from most to least recent:

Society has a trust problem. More censorship will only make it worse.

… as we face growing pressure to censor content published on Substack that to some seems dubious or objectionable, our answer remains the same: we make decisions based on principles not PR, we will defend free expression, and we will stick to our hands-off approach to content moderation. While we have content guidelines that allow us to protect the platform at the extremes, we will always view censorship as a last resort, because we believe open discourse is better for writers and better for society. 

… It means we allow writers to publish what they want and readers to decide for themselves what to read, even when that content is wrong or offensive …

The internet needs better rules, not stricter referees

Other than in extreme cases involving violence or illicit activity, people should be allowed to decide for themselves who’s worth listening to, what’s trustworthy, and which direction is punching “down.”

How we approach moderation decisions

… we have a hands-off philosophy when it comes to censorship.

…

Yet our hands-off approach does not mean anything goes. We do have content guidelines, which, narrowly construed, reflect our intent to protect writers’ ability to openly express themselves while prohibiting harmful or illegal behavior.

Substack’s view of content moderation

… We do not seek to impose our views in the form of censorship or through appointing ourselves as the judges of truth or morality.

…

Ultimately, we think the best content moderators are the people who control the communities on Substack: the writers themselves. … As the meta platform, we cannot presume to understand the particularities of any given community or to know what’s best for it. We think it’s better that the publisher, or a trusted member of that community, sets the tone and maintains the desired standard, and we will continue to build tools to help them to do that. Such an approach allows for more understanding and nuance than moderation via blunt enforcement from a global administrator. 

Of course, there are limits. We do not allow porn on Substack, for example, or spam. We do not allow doxxing or harassment. We have content guidelines (which will evolve as Substack grows) with narrowly construed prohibitions with which writers must comply. But these guidelines are designed to protect the viability of the platform at the extremes, not act as a filter through which we see the world. There will always be many writers on Substack with whom we strongly disagree, and we will err on the side of respecting their right to express themselves, and readers’ right to decide for themselves what to read.

… we take a hands-off approach with who may use the platform …

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Substack may provide more guidance: in other posts and comments, as well as future revisions. In any case, I hope my brief guide will help you in locating and piecing together Substack’s content guidelines.

What do you think about Substack’s content rules? Is Substack taking the right approach? Would you change any of the rules?

1. By “write” and “read,” I mean to refer to audio, images, and video. as well as text.

2. I emphasize Substack’s rules rather than any interpretations I make. I hope this post is a helpful guide to what Substack has said up to now.

3. This guideline links to Stripe’s US service agreement and Stripe’s restricted businesses for more information.