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Have you been banned from Hubpages?

Changes without prior notification can cause unnecessary problems.

By Cheryl E PrestonPublished 10 months ago 3 min read
2
Have you been banned from Hubpages?
Photo by Sanchez Amezcua on Unsplash

I might be cut off

Banned-it's such a strong word. The definition is: officially exclude (someone) from a place-officially or legally prohibit. It sounds so permanent and I've just received a notice that I might be banned from a platform.

I've been writing for Hubpages for 5 years and I know others who have been writing for them for a decade or more. Last month a fellow Hubber told me he had been banned and did not understand why and this was the first time I heard the word associated with that platform. Yesterday I received a notice that an article I wrote was too promotional and that if this continued I could be banned. I am guessing this is a new feature because I've received notices in the past about being too promotional when I used certain words multiple times but I don't recall getting a notification or a warning of being put out to pasture until now.

The article I wrote was about 2 soap opera characters and I guess I used their names too much in the article. The story was about how viewers were saying online they thought this couple was boring so I placed the story on Vocal Media and it was published. (You can read it below).

Every platform is different

Each writing site has a right to have its own rules and they do. Vocal Media allows writers to use strong language and discuss subjects that other sites do not. NewsBreak is very strict about wording and the algorithm is interesting. I wrote an article and Dick Clark's name was in the title. The story was not promoted and I removed Clark's name and it began getting views. My deduction is that the algorithm obviously saw the name Dick as offensive because of the way some people use it. Talk about a laugh-out-loud moment.

I once wrote for a soap opera spoiler site where we were told to highlight keywords in bold print so the search engine would promote the story. On Hubpages I've had articles flagged because they don't want you to promote stories by highlighting keywords. When you know what is expected it's easier to follow the rules but receiving a notice about being banned after 5 years made me feel some kind of way, especially since I knew that no human had read and accessed the article.

I honestly don't know how else I could have written the story without mentioning the two women involved and using their names multiple times. They are married but retained their own last names so I could not substitute Mrs. and Mrs. Copeland or Mrs. and Mrs. Porter the way my husband and I were called Mr. and Mrs Preston. Neither could I say the Porters or the Copelands as we were often referred to as the Prestons.

By Glenn Carstens-Peters on Unsplash

Artificial intelligence has no reasoning or logic

A real human reading would have understood the context just as a human would have known that Dick Clark was a real person and not slang for a man's private part. I was not promoting these characters but inserted their names where it was necessary. I could have emailed someone at Hubpages but I felt there was no use. Each site's algorithm is set up the way it has been programmed. The AI (Artificial Intelligence) for Hubpages does not differentiate between a proper name and a product. All it recognizes is repetition so I must remember to govern myself accordingly.

The idea that the algorithm is rigged a certain way and that I and others can be banned without a chance to straighten things out is troubling. The person I mentioned earlier said his being banned was final with no appeal process. To be tossed aside after contributing to a site for years is concerning but it's the world we live in so beware. I'm sure somewhere out there are others who have been banned and are scratching their heads trying to figure out why. Welcome to the world of artificial intelligence which has no reasoning or logic but can cut you off at a moment's notice.

Pop Culture
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About the Creator

Cheryl E Preston

Cheryl is a widow who enjoys writing about current events, soap spoilers and baby boomer nostalgia. Tips are greatly appreciated.

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  • Randy Wayne Jellison-Knock10 months ago

    Troubling, indeed.

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