Q&A with Noel Titheradge
"The pandemic has transformed many people's online lives in ways they might never have imagined."
Throughout the Orwell Festival we’ve been sharing new writing and insights from this year’s Orwell Prize finalists. The Orwell Prize for Exposing Britain’s Social Evils is a social issues journalism prize, awarded since 2014 and run in partnership with the Joseph Rowntree Foundation.
The Prize is named in recognition of the task Joseph Rowntree gave his organization ‘to search out the underlying causes of weakness or evil’ that lay behind Britain’s social problems, the prize supports and encourages original, insightful and impactful reporting on social issues in the UK.
‘Inside OnlyFans’ - a BBC investigation by Noel Titheradge and Rianna Croxford into the notorious ‘internet subscription service’ - is currently nominated for this year’s award. We talked to Noel about the story behind the story - and the disturbing truths it reveals about life online.
What was the initial prompt for the investigation?
We’d recently worked together and kept hearing young people discussing OnlyFans. The site had become a darling of the press. Tabloids enthused about the latest creator to make it big – or the nurse or teacher who’d signed up - while broadsheets marvelled at its business model.
Both glamourised the world of OnlyFans at a time when millions were housebound in the pandemic. But we wanted to know the reality of using it - and discover how the site was navigating problems faced by others also hosting adult content.
What were the biggest challenges you faced when you were putting together the story?
We wanted to hear from those with first-hand knowledge of child use of the site. This is really difficult: few creators use their own names and it’s illegal for children to post sexually explicit content. So we spent weeks tracking down people who knew underage users and were prepared to tell us about their experiences appearing on the site.
The design of the website was another challenge. OnlyFans constructs a paywall around each individual creator that means you have to subscribe to every account you want to view and pay for content This means it’s not like Pornhub where videos can be easily searched like a kind of YouTube of porn. And so this inability to review content on pages before subscribing means material is not as easily scrutinised.
What happened next? Have their been any developments since the story was first published?
Having received the right of reply letter for the third investigation, which revealed leaked moderation guidelines for the site, OnlyFans was very keen to know the precise moment we intended to publish. Minutes before that happened - in a pretty extraordinary announcement - it said it was banning the posting of pornography.
At the time there was a fair amount of incredulity that a site best known for hosting pornography was now prohibiting it. But there was also criticism that many people who had found success there during the pandemic would have to look for a new home to host their photos and videos. However, the plans were torn up just six days later. OnlyFans said it would continue to host explicit content.
Has the investigation, and being shortlisted for the prize, changed how this kind of reporting is seen in the newsroom? Has it changed how you view your own work?
It’s definitely renewed my interest in starting from scratch on a subject and seeing it all the way through to multiple stories. When picking subjects to investigate, it can be tempting to stick to areas where you’ve got strong contacts, but there’s a real satisfaction in stretching yourself to explore corners of life where there are few journalists looking.
Why, ultimately, does this story matter?
Such was the meteoric rise of the site, it was important to scrutinise its success and answer a number of questions: how children were selling content; how they’re able to appear in accounts run by adults; and whether OnlyFans has any leniency towards accounts which post illegal content.
But it was also important to give an insight into the reality of some experiences on the site. The pandemic has transformed many people's online lives in ways they might never have imagined.
The consequences of children sharing explicit images - especially when the content could be leaked - may continue to haunt them for a long time to come. One mum we spoke to said her 17-year-old was put off going to college after using the site as she’s too scared of being recognised.
What is the best piece of reporting you've read, watched or heard recently?
Dan McCrum’s Money Men - the story behind his Wirecard investigations.
Which journalists working today do you most admire?
Pippa Crerar - a journalist consistently delivering huge scoops. Michael Buchanan - an indefatigable reporter whose maternity scandal stories were dogged investigations developed over many years. They will undoubtedly have led to greater scrutiny of services and save lives. Sirin Kale - a brilliant writer whose stories are always about people first and foremost.
Who (or what) helped you most when you were first starting your career?
Editors with a love of hearing original stories and an enduring patience in helping to develop them.
What does George Orwell mean to you?
Independent spirit, eternal skepticism and only ever punching up.
Noel Titheradge is a senior investigative journalist for BBC News based in London. He focuses on uncovering failings in institutional care, abuses of power and social injustices. A former producer at Panorama, he writes long reads and produces and directs documentaries.