What NSFW originally meant, how it evolved, and whether it’s time

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Anyone with a digital footprint will know this old internet acronym in some way. But I guarantee that not many people have ever really thought about where it originally came from. Not only that, but the meaning of NSFW has actually undergone an interesting and irritating evolution.

In this article, we’ll review the history of NSFW, how it’s changed, its current uses, other acronyms derived from it, and whether we still really need it.

NSFW meaning – original text

do you know NSFW is one of the oldest acronyms on the Internet. It was first used in 1998. and interpreted as unfit or unfit for work.

Additionally, a woman reportedly posted content on the Snopes.com forum warning users that the content was “NFBSK” – “Not Suitable for British School Children.” This is basically a warning to anyone browsing this forum to be careful around children.

It could be considered another ingredient in the NSFW soup of the past.

We all knew at the time that it was intended to serve as a warning to any recipient that the content contained something you would label as “stuff you wouldn’t want your mother or boss to see.” So it wasn’t just for kids.

Did you know that this acronym is so old that there are studies and authors analyzing its use on social media — entire studies dedicated to four little letters?

Date: Urban Dictionary included the word in 2003. Merriam-Webster officially included the word on its page in 2015.

How the meaning of NSFW has changed

Back to the present day — and take a closer look at how the acronym is a bit dated — NSFW makes too many assumptions.

First, the letters assume that we all work in offices with someone supervising us. It assumes that we all have kids using our computers. Then, technology has advanced by leaps and bounds since 1998. Now we have features like safe search and parental lock.

Back then we didn’t have smartphones, so everything was on your work computer (or if you were lucky enough, a home computer). That’s why the acronym was needed. Now we have multiple devices, you have your work computer, your computer, your smartphone, and anything that has a plug to plug in somewhere.

When we have a smartphone, the NSFW connotations are meaningless because our searches are private and can be locked away from anyone who shouldn’t be seeing it.

But let’s look at another often overlooked point, which is when labeling something as inappropriate. What is inappropriate for one person, may not be inappropriate for another. For example, I stumbled upon a Google Arts & Culture article that was labeled “Not Appropriate for Work.”

This is just a brief history of the classical nude.

Yes, classical art and statues that can be found in any gallery. Heck, people pay to fly to Europe to see masterful art that contains nude figures at places like the Louvre. But in the articles I found, the same images hanging on the walls – including The Birth of Venus – were labeled as prohibited. This is crazy.

So what about those whose work involves researching content in the NSFW realm? My job is a prime example. Sexual information is my job and nudity appears on my monitor every day. Inappropriate Jack-O’-Lantern.

Not to mention that the acronym itself implies that all adults are adult-thinking perverts who are incapable of making rational decisions about what they consume around other people — and no, we’re not including the black sheep. What’s even crazier is that did you know that the “Free the Nipple” movement has been labeled NSFW? This is completely contradictory as the purpose of the event is to promote topless freedom for women but it highlights the inequality that men can be topless but women cannot.

Fact: Columnist Dan Savage coined his own acronym, “NSFYW,” for “Not a Job for You.”

Finally, modern online etiquette considers There are many things that may offend others — something more serious than the sight of a penis. That’s where the new acronym “NSFL” comes from.t stands for “Life is not safe” It warns readers that there are serious triggers in the article.

I’ll try not to get too “ranty” here. But I make no promises. And here’s another compelling reason why the NSFW tag probably needs to go in the trash.

It used to be a warning to help you keep your job or protect your kids from a bloody attack. Now it’s a marketing tool for social media to get clicks. And it’s not just for companies, it’s for individuals too — whether they’re just looking to get more views or just want to be popular in a saturated market.

The abbreviation is now a worm on the hook.

It can be anything from decorative foam on top of spoiled coffee that looks like a body part to misleading people into getting something “obscene” that is not actually sexual. One example I read on Vice.com was that in 2016, KFC Australia tweeted, “Spicy food coming soon,” with an NSFW tag. They were eventually forced to apologize after a public backlash.

One example I found was an article on BuzzFeed that featured historical facts you learned as a kid that you don’t learn anymore. Granted, some of it was a little risqué. But most of it was entertaining and informative. There were a few examples of royal mistresses secretly feeding laxatives to rivals, or famous authors writing love letters about farting.

NSFW Meaning – Conclusion

Now, looking at the whole picture, we can see that the acronym once worked. But the days of the single office computer are long gone. People are well aware that they live in a world that requires organizing what they consume and dividing responsibility across multiple devices.

Then there are the changing perceptions of what is rude or inappropriate. Once upon a time, seeing a woman’s ankles was shameful. Now we see topless women marching, pointing out fairly glaring inequalities. We have priceless art with penises and breasts painted on it, which is acceptable somewhere (on a school trip) but not on a pixelated screen.

It’s not like someone can just stand up and say, “Don’t use this!” But thankfully, the internet can help things change faster. It’s safe to say that NSFW is now a pointless attention-getting tool, or even a joke. But there are newer versions in use, and hopefully they’ll become more common.

What do you think about the meaning of NSFW and its current usage? Please share your thoughts in the comments.