Craigslist "Adult" section go bye bye

[DaFace]

http://www.craigslist.org if you just want to look. Or here's an article about it.

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2010...s.html?_r=2&hp

Craigslist Removes Adult Services Section
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: September 4, 2010

Filed at 3:01 p.m. ET

Craigslist closed the adult services section of its website Saturday, replacing it with a black bar that says ''censored,'' just over a week after a group of state attorneys general said there weren't enough protections against blocking potentially illegal ads promoting prostitution.

The listings came under new scrutiny after the jailhouse suicide last month of a former medical student who was awaiting trial in the killing of a masseuse he met through Craigslist. Critics have likened the services to virtual pimping, while Craigslist maintained the site was carrying ads even tamer than those published by some newspapers.

Like many other free online forums, Craigslist typically does not review ads before they are posted by users. But in 2008, under pressure from 40 state attorneys general, Craigslist began requiring posters to provide a working phone number and pay a fee for placing an ad in what is now the adult services section. Several months later, Craigslist adopted a manual screening process in which postings are reviewed before publishing.

State officials believe Craigslist is still not doing enough to stop illegal ads from appearing.

The company said Saturday it would issue a statement on the matter, though it didn't say when.

Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, one of the 17 attorneys general who pressed for the change, said in a statement that he welcomed the change and was trying to verify Craigslist's official policy going forward.

In an Aug. 24 letter, the state attorneys general said Craigslist should remove the section because it couldn't adequately block potentially illegal ads promoting prostitution and child trafficking.

Authorities point to the case of 24-year-old Philip Markoff as a prime example of the dangers posed by Craigslist services. The former medical student was accused of killing a masseuse he met through the hugely popular classified advertising site, which was founded by Craig Newmark. Markoff committed suicide in the Boston jail where he was awaiting trial.

Craigslist's adult services section carried ads for everything from personal massages to a night's companionship, which critics say veered into prostitution.

Craigslist's CEO Jim Buckmaster said in a May blog posting that the company's ads were no worse than those published by the alternative newspaper chain Village Voice Media. He cited one explicit ad which included the phrase: ''anything goes $90.'

[Hammock Parties]

And you can take my casual encounters section when you pry it from my cold, dead hands.

[Bugeater]

Craigslist as a whole has gone downhill in last couple years, anymore it's a virtual cesspool of scammers and vultures. I swear 90% of the job ads are some type of scam, people can't get their ads in the right category or just don't give a damn that they're not posting them in the right place, the wanted section has become a begging section and the free category is just people trying to get people to haul off their junk for them for nothing. It was a great idea at one time but now it's practically useless.

[Hammock Parties]

I swear 90% of the job ads are some type of scam

Probably the most devious scam I've seen on CL is the job ad that after your initial contact, asks you to fill out a credit application.

Now, obviously I'm not stupid enough to fall for that. But there are dumb people out there who really need a job and are going to click on through and fill out that form and get their identities stolen.

****ing evil.

[Bugeater]

Originally Posted by GoChiefs

Probably the most devious scam I've seen on CL is the job ad that after your initial contact, asks you to fill out a credit application.

Now, obviously I'm not stupid enough to fall for that. But there are dumb people out there who really need a job and are going to click on through and fill out that form and get their identities stolen.

****ing evil.

Huh, I've wondered what they're after when they post the ones that are obviously fake, I figured they were mostly spammers looking to harvest email addresses. I'd never inquire on any ad that doesn't at least say the name of the business or have a local address or phone number, but I suppose there are desperate people out there that fall for that shit.

[LaChapelle]

It could help pay for a new server
ChiefsPlanet Hook ups

[Param]

The jobs section is better when they make you pay to post a job ad. Some cities have this. It does cut down the spam in the jobs section.

[googlegoogle]

I say shut the internet and phone lines down.
They could be used for prostitution - the most dangerous crime on the planet next to Al Queda sponsored terrorism.

[Rain Man]

Well, this is going to give me 15 or 20 more hours per week.

[prhom]

Originally Posted by Bugeater

It was a great idea at one time but now it's practically useless.

Meh, I've actually used craigslist a lot lately and had pretty good luck. Of course there's always the obligatory guy from London (or somewhere else ridiculous) who REALLY wants to buy your old couch for 5 times what it's worth if you'd only take a personal check from "his guy" who'll come by to pick it up. I posted a rental house on there and got a ton of responses. I never have tried to find a job on craigslist though, and it sounds like that's the worst part of it.

[Rain Man]

I've posted job ads on craigslist before. You get 800,000 responses to sift through, but if I recall correctly we've actually hired a couple of people successfully off of craigslist.

The spammers and scammers try to ruin everything on the Internet, and they're just morons who should shoot themselves in the head. They don't even scam people competently.

As an example, I get regular e-mails from some travel site where people going on trips can find other people who might want to go with them. I originally signed up because I needed to find some other people to go to the Amazon or Timbuktu, since my wife doesn't want to go and I don't quite feel safe going alone. Those trips are on hold, but I get e-mails whenever new people sign up and it's kind of fun to see where people want to go and that sort of thing.

Of course, there are Nigerian scammers on there, and they're complete doofus idiots. They always put a picture of a model up, and the model is always from a place that doesn't exist like, "Florida City, Idaho", or "Seattle, North Carolina", and ....

1. The model is always either bisexual or looking for a husband.

2. The model apparently can't write English at more than a third-grade level, despite being from all-American cities like Florida City, Idaho or Seattle, North Carolina.

3. The model is often quite lazy, either copying and pasting the same answer to every question (e.g.: "Enter the type of food you like:" "I a good woman looking for husband. I bisexual.") or writing "I tell you later" as a response to every question.

4. They're so lazy that they won't even post pictures of white models. They're always black models. I understand why it happens, because Nigerian scammers probably prefer black models and have those sites bookmarked, but c'mon, people, do your market research. You should be posting 7 white models to every 2 Hispanic models to every 1 black model, and then throw an Asian in there occasionally.

I realize that they only need to fool the most naive one percent of people, but c'mon. Put in a little bit of work and go for the bottom five percent of the population, and you've quintupled your market. And the bottom five percent is not setting your sights too high.

[Hammock Parties]

Sounds like Rain Man would be a good scammer.

[Rain Man]

Originally Posted by GoChiefs

Sounds like Rain Man would be a good scammer.

My heart wouldn't be in scamming, but I really think I could add a lot of value as a scam consultant. Those Nigerians are really inefficient right now, and they waste a lot of opportunities. An ongoing retainer contract with my firm to guide their strategy and execution could probably triple their revenues overnight.

[Sweet Daddy Hate]

BOO!

[MikeMaslowski]

"Authorities point to the case of 24-year-old Philip Markoff as a prime example of the dangers posed by Craigslist services. The former medical student was accused of killing a masseuse he met through the hugely popular classified advertising site, which was founded by Craig Newmark. Markoff committed suicide in the Boston jail where he was awaiting trial."

I think I'm missing something. A guy met a masseuse on craigslist, killed her/him, got arrested, went to jail and killed himself. And that is craigslists fault? All you do gooders who support censorship over safegards will be singing a different tune when they make it illegal to wear leather belts anymore because it comes from an animal. Unless I'm just missing something. Could be possible.