Dating app Bumble bans profile images of guns in response to mass shootings
Dating app Bumble will no longer allow users to upload pictures that include guns, the company announced in a blog post Monday night. Moderators of the popular app will scour the existing profiles of nearly 30 million users to flag any photo that includes a deadly weapon, like a knife or firearm, for removal.
There are exceptions to the new rule: Members of the military or law enforcement in uniform will be excluded from the policy, as well as some hobbyists who submit an appeal for their photos. But otherwise, deadly weapons will be scrubbed from existing profiles and blocked from new uploads. "As mass shootings continue to devastate communities across the country, it’s time to state unequivocally that gun violence is not in line with our values, nor do these weapons belong on Bumble," the company wrote in its announcement.
Bumble CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd told The New York Times that the app will eventually filter out mentions of guns in profile descriptions as well. The company also announced a commitment to donate $100,000 to March For Our Lives, the organization founded by students of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, to coordinate protests against gun violence across the nation.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Summer Meza has worked at The Week since 2018, serving as a staff writer, a news writer and currently the deputy editor. As a proud news generalist, she edits everything from political punditry and science news to personal finance advice and film reviews. Summer has previously written for Newsweek and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, covering national politics, transportation and the cannabis industry.
-
Today's political cartoons - January 30, 2025
Cartoons Thursday's cartoons - RFK Jr. remonstrated, funding freeze thawed, and more
By The Week US Published
-
The Brutalist: 'haunting' historical epic is Oscar frontrunner
The Week Recommends Adrien Brody is 'savagely good' as Hungarian-Jewish architect chasing the American dream
By The Week UK Published
-
Bonnie Blue, Andrew Tate and a new cult of sex extremism
Talking Point OnlyFans adult worker and male misogynist have 'plenty in common' claims commentator
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
Chinese AI chatbot's rise slams US tech stocks
Speed Read The sudden popularity of a new AI chatbot from Chinese startup DeepSeek has sent U.S. tech stocks tumbling
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
US port strike averted with tentative labor deal
Speed Read The strike could have shut down major ports from Texas to Maine
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Biden expected to block Japanese bid for US Steel
Speed Read The president is blocking the $14 billion acquisition of U.S. Steel by Japan's Nippon Steel, citing national security concerns
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Judges block $25B Kroger-Albertsons merger
Speed Read The proposed merger between the supermarket giants was stalled when judges overseeing two separate cases blocked the deal
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Rupert Murdoch loses 'Succession' court battle
Speed Read Murdoch wanted to give full control of his empire to son Lachlan, ensuring Fox News' right-wing editorial slant
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Bitcoin surges above $100k in post-election rally
Speed Read Investors are betting that the incoming Trump administration will embrace crypto
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Enron mystery: 'sick joke' or serious revival?
Speed Read 23 years after its bankruptcy filing, the Texas energy firm has announced its resurrection
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
US charges Indian tycoon with bribery, fraud
Speed Read Indian billionaire Gautam Adani has been indicted by US prosecutors for his role in a $265 million scheme to secure solar energy deals
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published