Last week, I was among those who lambasted the new kid-friendly search site Kiddle for blocking and stigmatizing LGBTQ- and sexuality-related searches. It’s since taken steps to improve, and at least one other search site has followed suit.
Kiddle has now unblocked a number of its previously blocked terms, including “LGBT,” “lesbian,” “gay,” “bisexual,” and “queer.” (“Transgender” was already allowed.) They still block a number of words related to sexuality, however, including “vagina” and “penis,” although “breast” and “menstruation” now return results.
Additionally, they’ve gotten rid of the two awful warning messages that appeared variously when one searched for blocked words:
You have entered an LGBT related search query. Please realize that while Kiddle has nothing against the LGBT community, it’s hard to guarantee the safety of all the search results for such queries. We recommend that you talk to your parent or guardian about such topics.
Oops, looks like your query contained some bad words. Please try again!
Now, it just says, “Oops, try again,” which could be frustrating, but at least isn’t as blatantly stigmatizing.
I still wish that a fuller range of body parts returned results, especially as Kiddle’s editors seem careful about selecting results with kid-specific or fairly simple, non-explicit content. Let’s hope they move in a more inclusive direction as they find useful content on those topics. I give them credit, however, for responding quickly to criticism and taking positive steps to address some of the concerns so many people had.
Let’s not forget, too, that they’re not the only game in town when it comes to “kid-safe” search engines, as I detailed in my earlier post. The good news is that KidzSearch, which claims to be used in “1000’s of public and private schools,” now seems to have unblocked LGBT and its component terms, too. KidRex still blocks “lesbian,” “gay,” and “bisexual,” but allows “LGBT,” “LGBTQ,” and “transgender.”
Do you know which search sites, if any, your kids are using at school? Are you satisfied with how they treat LGBTQ and sexuality terms? How are you helping your kids learn how to be safe online?