OnlyFans billboards in London spark anger
An OnlyFans model has insisted billboards promoting her content are “well within advertising guidelines” following outcry from residents.
A string of adverts featuring model Eliza Rose Watson, 34, posing in her underwear have been spotted in Harrow and Edgware, north-west London, while another was seen in Norwood, south-east London.
One local resident graffitied the advert in North Harrow, with the message “keep porn off our streets”.
But Watson claims OnlyFans is “one of the most protected platforms” against underage people accessing pornography.
She said there were months of planning and discussions regarding advertising regulations to make sure the advert would be approved and would not be harmful to children.
Comparing her billboard to underwear marketing, she said hers ads were “less sexy than Ann Summers”, adding: “But to the people that are in general offended just because it's kind of not something that's done – there's many other adult-oriented ads.
“There's ads for alcohol, there's ads for gambling, there's ads for Ann Summers, and you encounter those walking down the high street on a daily basis.”
Martin Grays, 54, who lives in Edgware, criticised the ads, saying: “It’s just not something they should advertise in public where families are walking past and kids are walking to and from school.
“It’s just not right for me. I don’t get why they have done it.”
But Watson, a former pre-school teacher, said she wants to “break the stigma” of OnlyFans, pointing to how it is becoming more mainstream.
She added: “The more people can open up the dialogue about it, the less secrecy and shame or potential misuse of the platform…
“Given the careful thought and consideration behind it and looking into any legitimate harm that could be done to a child, I don’t think I’ve done anything wrong.”
Watson said the adverts do not tell people how to access the site or give a website address and young people would not be able to access OnlyFans on phones if parental controls are set up.
The Advertising Standards Authority confirmed that there have been complaints about the ad but an investigation has not yet been launched.
A spokesman said: “We’ve received five complaints about this ad. Complainants believe the ad is inappropriate in particular in untargeted media where children are able to view it.
“We’re reviewing these complaints to determine whether there are grounds for an investigation.”
A Harrow Council spokesperson told Yahoo News UK: “We are sorry to hear that this billboard advert has upset some of our residents.
“Although we do not have any control over content that is displayed on the billboard, we agree this advert is inappropriate.”
The spokesperson urged residents to voice any concerns with the Advertising Standards Agency.
What is OnlyFans?
OnlyFans is an online platform, launched in 2016, that is mainly for users to share their homemade content – which includes pornography – with paying subscribers.
Photos and videos are protected behind a paywall and are only made available to those who pay.
The site, which is believed to have over 50 million registered users, saw a boom in content creators and users during the COVID-19 pandemic, with lockdowns forcing people to come up with new ways to share and consume content.
Founder Tim Stokely announced plans to ban sexually explicit content from the platform in 2021 but a backlash from sex workers saw the policy scrapped.
Creators say they can earn more money by working for themselves and reduces the chances of sexual exploitation and lowers the dangers for women who may resort to other work in the sex industry.
Chanel Santini, who creates content for the platform, told the New York Times that she no longer has to work as an escort and makes “tens of thousands of dollars every month”.
However, critics argue that the platform is simply another site used for pornographic material and women still face dangers from subscribers.
OnlyFans content creators told The Spectator that they had discovered pictures and videos taken from the site and uploaded to porn sites, while one spoke of a subscriber sexually harassing her after tracking down her address.
