Twitch is disbanding its Safety Advisory Council and will replace it with streamers

According to a report published at CNBC, Twitch has decided to terminate the contracts of all the existing members of its Safety Advisory Council. The council received the news that Twitch would not be renewing their contracts earlier this month, and they will reportedly be terminated effective Friday, May 31st, without further pay.

The advisory council was formed in May 2020 with the goal to “enhance Twitch’s approach to issues of trust and safety.” It was made up of nine members, including Twitch streamers, moderators, and outside experts with experience studying and combating online harassment. The group assisted Twitch on the development of new safety policies and products while also acting as a liaison, able to bring the Twitch community’s safety concerns to decision makers.

Though these contracts are at their end, Twitch intends for the Safety Advisory Council to continue. In a statement to The Verge, Twitch trust and safety communications manager Elizabeth Busby writes that the streaming platform will expand the council’s membership to the roughly 180 members of Twitch’s ambassador program.

“After working with many of the same core members for several years, we have brought in new council members to offer fresh, diverse perspectives,” Busby wrote. “We’re excited to work with our global Twitch Ambassadors, all of whom are active on Twitch, know our safety work first hand, and have a range of experiences to pull from.”

CNBC writes that Twitch declined to say whether the ambassadors would be paid. Paid ethics teams have often been cut back as tech companies have tightened their belts over the past couple of years.