Baby Shaker App Outrage - ABC Front Page Story

[Michael CM1]

I really don't get the outrage. Really, I don't.

The app is one of the stupidest (if not the) I have heard about, but it's not like the gaming industry is built upon a bunch of sans-violence, sans-crime games. Grand Theft Auto ring a bell? A lot of good games are military games, in which you plunk guys with bullets and bombs.

There's also the whining I keep seeing for speedy app approval. Well, the faster you go, the more mistakes you'll make. I have no idea how this got through. Apparently someone with now knowledge of babies works in the approval department. But geez, this is a video game. Literally no babies were harmed in the making of this game.

 

[Darkroom]

*BOO ****ING HOO!

"oh noes, its offending me take it down!"

Goddamn it, if its offending you, don't go looking for it in the first place you dumbasses.

What if the iFart apps offend me? Can I get those taken down also?

seriously...

do soccer moms / oprah viewers have nothing else to do this week than to freak out over this retarded app??

classic witch-hunt scenario.

 

[armoguy94]

Who is the IDIOT that approved this app? What kind of people do Apple hire?

 

[rKunda]

I'm still dumbfounded that people are actually angry that a company would remove an app like this. What's wrong with the world?

Yeah, how about a holocaust app? I mean, it's all in good fun, and no one really gets harmed. What's the big deal?

Disgusting.

 

[Skull Leader]

iPhart Mini

What if you could just shake a Fart out of the baby? Would that make it OK?

 

[theOdyssey]

I wonder how many people Apple has assigned to doing reviews? I have this impression that there's one employee sitting in a cubicle with an overflow of work to do, making arbitrary and bad choices because there's no time to do a better job. Or maybe the whole process is automated and relies on A.I.!

It's not to anyone's benefit for Apple to make these approval and disapproval misjudgments, nor to delay apps getting to market, so I hope they take care of whatever the problem is.

I have a very strong suspicion that they're outsourcing the approval to a foreign country staffed by people who aren't Apple employees... Once you get past that initial approval part, someone else takes a look at the app for technical things. It would go a long way to explain why so much strange stuff gets approved or doesn't...

 

[rcs128]

It's not censorship at all. For instance, if Walmart decides it doesn't want to sell porn, it's a sensible business decision because they want to maintain a family-safe shopping experience. Apple's doing the same thing -- they want to maintain a shopping experience that meets their own bounds of taste and appropriateness. If you don't agree with their decisions, well, too bad. Start your own app store and delivery platform - No one's stopping you.

 

[NT1440]

What if you could just shake a Fart out of the baby? Would that make it OK?

Interesting point. What if the app had been "burp the baby" in which you burp them by shaking the phone vigorously? Its still shaking a baby, which can lead to death, but if its the the goal does that make people sing a different tune?

Would the baby shaker association still be speaking out? After all, your shaking a virtual baby vigorously.

 

[akacaj]

Well look, at least it wasn't a Dog Shaker app. Then we would have had riots in the US.

 

[puffnstuff]

I don't think there should be any censorship

 

[NT1440]

I don't think there should be any censorship

As many many people have pointed out, this isnt censorship.

 

[mnb]

It's a freakin game, sheesh. Being politically correct has been, once again, taken way too far.

I got high score on Baby Shaker so I'm going to see what happens when I shake my REAL baby!

Jail is what happens! Duh!

 

[tmill56]

this is what people are offended at?

just checking but we are talking about someone shaking a phone right?? not a real child..... people need to get this worked up about actual abuse not some laugh on an iphone..... so are you to tell me that it is offensive to have the ibeer app also ??? does it not condone underage drinking??? people need to relax that is one problem with the average American today it's all about being so uptight that you forget to laugh once in a while even at something that may not be the most correct.. it does not make you a bad person.

 

[jonesy16]

As many many people have pointed out, this isnt censorship.

Umm, no. Actually that's exactly what this is. The word censorship doesn't necessarily imply government intervention. Unconstitutional censorship would, but anybody that controls what people are exposed to (such as a store) can engage in censorship. If the MacRumors staff removed posts from this forum that would be censorship as well ...

Actually I just watched the youtube video and the baby even gets big red "X's" over it's eyes when it stops crying which, to me at least, seems to indicate that the baby is dead. So now this game is actually educational ... but let's keep people in the dark.

 

[c-Row]

I wonder... where are all those who cry the loudest if apps get rejected from the store? Those who insist that customers are sentient human beings who can decide whether or not they should buy an app that might offend them?

 

[boss.king]

Haha, I personally like the Shake a Baby app. It's funny. It's not like I'm going to go around shaking all the babies I can get my hands on, its just just a bit of humor. The world needs to take things like this less seriously

 

[fr33 loader]

It's more of branding image rather than censorship above anything else. Apple doesn't want their logo be part of such application plain and simple. And they do have the right to choose which moral, ethical, political, spiritual ties they want their brand associated with.

What I really see is the downhill trend of creativity by some developers. There will be a barrage off-shoots of such apps to take advantage of the hype.

 

[Doctor Q]

If the MacRumors staff removed posts from this forum that would be censorship as well ...

We do remove posts from our forums, so your analogy is a good one. Apple can choose what to sell, and what they choose is selling most but not all apps, based on a pre-approval process. We imagine that their criteria are meant to balance their profit motive and what they consider to be generally acceptable to their targeted customers: the general public.

MacRumors also chooses where to draw the line, based on perceived community standards, although we get more direct feedback than Apple does, and we moderate after the fact, not preemptively. If a post is objectionable, and somebody reports it, and we agree that it's outside our standards, we remove it.

A private company and a private website. Either could choose to allow all apps/posts and apply no standards at all. That would please some and anger others. Instead, both choose to disallow certain apps/posts. That too pleases some and angers others.

 

[PowerFullMac]

This is stupid, if you find it offensive then don't buy it, don't stop other people from doing so!

Idiots.

 

[crossifixio]

Shocking!

Wow, how did this App even get approved in the first place?!?

Read Article Here

Ok so this what happened! Apple wanted to get as many apps out there and hit the billion download target and in the rush to approve apps this stupid and chimerical app got approved!

 

[Rot'nApple]

Some Common Sense in your App Store approval process Apple! Jeesh!

 

[Compile 'em all]

Ok so this what happened! Apple wanted to get as many apps out there and hit the billion download target and in the rush to approve apps this stupid and chimerical app got approved!

What does the number of approved apps has to do with the 1 billion download count?

Nothing.

 

[jweinraub]

Disgusting ... Yes .... Pulled ? No.

I don't think the "game" is appropriate. And the person that developed it should probably seek psychological counselling, but the fact of the matter is, this screening process Apple has for content should go.

The screening process should only be for nefarious payloads.

If content is reviewed, it should have a rating system, just as the ESRB does already. Content should not be restricted, as that is censorship. The fact they do promotes people jailbreaking so they can install Apps that Apple refuses to allow.

Obviously you can install anything you want on your Mac regardless how distasteful/disgusting/morally wrong it is. Why is an iPhone any different?

I own Amateur Surgeon which is rated M-17. Why, because it is a bit gory? But the minute there is a female nipple and/or curse words, it won't be approved? Why not? Why have programmes rated M-17 to begin with?

So what there are 50 fart apps. That is the whole purpose of capitalism, isn't it? Let the market decide.

Obviously if there is illegal content, such as rape, child pornography, then that is one thing. But Apple even refusing to say what will get rejected or not makes much sense as the FCC not saying what is and isn't appropriate for OTA broadcasting.

 

[REVOLUTION GUNS]

People's issues with this seem to be twofold, and they're getting mixed up and causing misplaced outrage.

1) "CAPITALISM CAPITALISM LET ME CHOOSE" As someone said before, you have a mechanism of choice: search for your baby shakin' wares somewhere else. This agent of capitalism has chosen not to provide it, and being that they are the arbiters when it comes to their store, you shouldn't be shocked.

2) "PEOPLE NEED TO CHILL OUT DUDE" Well, we could delve into this from some sociological or psychological angle... we just wouldn't have enough room in this forum to expound it all. The fact that people find certain things offensive is related to culture, upbringing... you name it.

In summation, Apple's realized that it made a mistake that may've offended some of its customers, removed the app in question, issued an apology, and is hedging its bets that those who are Outraged at the Outrage won't really make a dent, whether in opinion or actual measurable purchases. It's their store, and they'll run it how they like, whether you're shouting in a forum about it or not!

 

[REVOLUTION GUNS]

And naturally, I left out "OMG THIS IS DISGUSTING REMOVING IT IS MORALLY SOUND," which seems to be a kneejerk value judgment that also happens to be aligned with how the Outraged at the Outrage are perceiving Apple's move.

Everyone can have their opinion, but ultimately, Apple's right because Apple makes the rules for Apple's store. You're welcome to decide how you feel about this, no matter how stilted due to your misunderstanding of capitalism or whatever else