Like all websites and apps, the gay dating platform is protected by Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996. law, Grindr is not required to do anything when it comes to moderating drug-related content on its app. “While we are constantly improving upon this process, it is important to remember that Grindr is an open platform.” “Grindr encourages users to report suspicious and threatening activities,” the spokesperson added. When asked about the continued use of Grindr for the buying and selling of drugs, a spokesperson for the company said, “Grindr prohibits the promotion of drug use in its user profiles and is committed to creating a safe environment through digital and human screening tools to help its users connect and thrive.” Nearly two years later, however, the app’s drug market appears to be alive and well. In late 2016, LGBTQ blog WEHOville reported that its two-month study of gay dating apps - including Scruff, Mister X and Surge - revealed “only Grindr allowed its users to openly include emojis and text in their profiles that indicated they were drug users or sellers.” A month after WEHOville’s report, Grindr appeared to have censored at least a few well-known drug emojis and words. “Reporting drug profiles never feels like it has an impact,” he said. “NO SUCH THING AS CENSORSHIP”ĭespite the many gay dating apps through which he could potentially push his product, Mike, the New York drug dealer, said he exclusively uses Grindr.ĭerrick Anderson, the Grindr user in Chicago, said the app’s administrators are not doing enough when it comes to policing drug activity. used methamphetamines in 2016, and gay men use the drug at double the rate of the general population. Department of Health and Human Services, 1.4 million people in the U.S. Jones said approximately 300 men responded to the ad he and his fellow researchers posted to Grindr.Īccording to data from the U.S. “When I started this study, I thought Grindr might be a good option, and so far it has actually been very successful.” Grindr “Meth has been much more prevalent among LGBT people,” Jones noted. Jermaine Jones, a substance abuse researcher in Columbia University’s psychiatry department, said the combination of gay men’s disproportionate drug use and Grindr’s reputation as a “parTy and play” platform led him to use the app to recruit participants for a methamphetamine addiction study. “Of course drug sales are happening on other dating apps, but at a fraction." “Drugs were always sprinkled throughout the app, but now it’s nothing like before," he said. The capital T refers to meth’s street name, “Tina.” The terms “parTy and play” and the acronym “PNP,” which can be seen on Grindr and beyond, are used by some gay men to describe a sexual encounter while under the influence of drugs. Those who are new to Grindr may be confused by all the seemingly random capital letter Ts and acronyms in Grindr profiles - that’s because some drug buyers, sellers and users on the app have their own language. “All you need to do is open up your app and look for that capital ‘T.’” SECRET LANGUAGE “The issue with drugs has been a gay community plague since the ‘80s, but in the modern era, you don’t need a guy who knows a guy,” Derrick Anderson, a Grindr user from Chicago, said. However, those who use the app say it is still home to a robust market for illicit substances. Grindr, by far the world’s most popular gay dating app with an estimated 3 million daily users, has previously taken steps to address the buying, selling and promoting of drugs on its platform. “Today with Grindr, men can have sex and drugs delivered to their door instantly,” Phil McCabe, a social worker and president of the National Association of LGBT Addiction Professionals, told NBC News.
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