My fellow Episodians,
This is something I want to be able to have a conversation about. Nobody’s talking about it, and I feel like it’s important.
I may be misunderstanding things, so please correct me if I’m incorrect. I am simply stating what I’ve observed and my personal experiences with the app and reading forum guidelines (although I will admit I’ve read them selectively and not thoroughly).
12+ Applications in this category may also contain infrequent mild language, frequent or intense cartoon, fantasy or realistic violence, and mild or infrequent mature or suggestive themes, and simulated gambling which may not be suitable for children under the age of 12.
App Ratings - What they mean and how to Restrict by Rating | Be Web Smart.
From everything I’ve so far understood, Episode is a 12+ and from what I see in either User Stories or even the Episode clothing closet doesn’t reflect that.
My main problem at the moment is the ad Radish that is being shown. I don’t know exactly how ad sponsorship, ad revenue, and all of that works. I don’t know if this app being advertised is necessarily Episode’s decision. All I know is that Radish is an app with interactive stories just like Episode. The ad is either short (approx. 5 seconds) or around 30 seconds. They both have a picture and a story labeled Sex with an Alpha. This app is 17+ and is super inappropriate for kids that are 12+.
Exposing kids to apps like this just doesn’t seem right and just reinforces the concerns in the guidelines and protection of younger audiences.
Most stories do not have a skip option with scenes where the characters sleep together. Most popular stories that have sexual covers or scenes haven’t been removed. There has been some change in the covers, but even the most popular romance stories still remain overly sexual.
This app doesn’t really prepare kids that are 12+ to be in a very free, clean environment. Even the Episode original stories reflect themes like murder, adultery, gambling, sex, and drinking in a way that makes it commonplace in the world of a potential 12 year old.
Anyone who downloads the app can also write in the Writer’s Portal. By making these sort of things normal, you’re having young kids write adult content to fit the mold original writers have set.
I guess my reason for this is to wonder if there’s a way to change stories, to more strictly enforce the guidelines, and make changes to accomodate to a younger audience.
I’m wondering if the rating is there to suit the app’s content or to maintain the millions of readers.
Perhaps my concerns are small and just something I’m fretting over, but there seems to be a lot of gray area in the guidelines. What are your guys’ opinions on it? How can we fix community issues?
- Lynne Harper 
