JuicyCampus.com - the controversial Web site for anonymous gossip around college campuses - died quietly last week, another victim of the financial crisis.
The site's founder and CEO, Matt Ivester, announced in a statement on Feb. 4 that the site would be shutting down. Citing a loss of "online ad revenue" and "venture capital funding," Ivester reported that the growth of the site "outpaced our ability to muster the resources needed to survive this economic downturn."
The site, which encouraged users to post gossip about their peers anonymously, only removed comments that violated copyright infringement, a policy which allowed comments that were personal and hostile to stay on the site.
"It was really sick and twisted how people could go and trash whoever they want," said Sam Baker '11.
Some Brown students interviewed last night in the Sciences Library and Ivy Room were happy to see the site go, though others said they would miss the diversion. Many, too, said they had not heard of JuicyCampus.
Haley Strausser '12, who said she went on JuicyCampus "maybe a couple times a week," was sorry to see the forum go. "When Facebook got boring, it was always an entertaining alternative," she said.
"It was a good way to pass the time," said Alison Wong '12. "I guess now I'll do homework instead."
But Sophia Manuel '11 said some of her friends were mentioned on the site. "They didn't appreciate it," she said. "I wouldn't want to be on it."
She added she was "happy to hear that it shut down."
"It was exploiting people for profit," said Mark Dee '11. "It appeals to the most basic and shallow parts of the human soul."
JuicyCampus provoked protests from students and administrators on many college campuses - and even a subpoena from the New Jersey attorney general.
None of the uproar managed to result in significant change to the Web site or its policies.
"While there are parts of Juicy Campus that none of us will miss - the mean-spirited posts and personal attacks," Ivester said in the statement, "it has also been a place for the fun, lighthearted gossip of college life."
Ivester thanked everyone "who has engaged in meaningful discussion about online privacy and internet censorship," and said that he hoped the dialogue would continue..
