The 'Streisand Effect' Explained: Why Censorship Sometimes Backfires

Sometimes, censoring content only places it further in the spotlight. Here's why.

By Mark Travers, Ph.D. | September 02, 2024

If someone told you specifically not to think of a white elephant, chances are you wouldn't be able to help but imagine it—the very thing you were told to avoid. This is because we humans, by nature, are curious and rebellious; we strive to know more, and we often bristle when we're told what we can and cannot do—especially when it concerns our right to knowledge.

This very blend of curiosity and defiance is what often leads to a fascinating and ironic psychological phenomenon: the "Streisand effect."

What Is the 'Streisand Effect'?

Research published by European Studies in 2022 explains the paradoxical story of this phenomenon:

In 2003, the California Coastal Records Project shared a photo online as part of an effort to document coastal erosion along the Florida coastline. However, the photo also happened to capture the Malibu mansion of the famous singer and actress Barbra Streisand. In February of that year, Streisand sued the photographer, Kenneth Adelman, as well as the online photo sales company that hosted the image, for invasion of privacy—seeking a whopping $50 million in damages. Her intent was to protect her privacy by having the photo removed from the internet.

However, Streisand's lawsuit only served to make the issue she was facing exponentially worse. Before taking legal action, the photo of her residence had been downloaded only six times—two of those times by her own lawyers. But once news of the lawsuit broke, the photo became an internet sensation; it was downloaded over 420,000 times in the span of a month. By December 2003, the Los Angeles Superior Court had dismissed the lawsuit, citing that the photo was taken from public airspace and did not violate any privacy laws.

This ironic outcome—where attempts to censor, remove, or hide information only serves to amplify it more in the public's eye—has come to be known as the "Streisand effect."

What Causes The Streisand Effect?

A 2015 study published in the International Journal of Communication shed light on the mechanisms behind the Streisand effect—revealing them to be as simple as they are ironic. Long before Barbra Streisand's unfortunate legal battle, scholars and thinkers had recognized that censorship often backfires.

The study's authors cite the Roman historian Tacitus, who wrote about the consequences of emperor Nero's censorship: "So long as the possession of these writings was attended by danger, they were eagerly sought and read: when there was no longer any difficulty in securing them, they fell into oblivion." Tacitus' observation, despite being made in 109 AD, underscores a timeless truth: when something is made inaccessible, it becomes even more desirable.

It's simple: much like the forbidden fruit, the more we're told to avoid something, that we can't see it or know about it, the more we want to know why it's forbidden—and what makes it so taboo or illicit.

How Does The 'Streisand Effect' Manifest?

Despite only receiving its name in 2003, the Streisand effect has been observed both before and after its conceptualization—and it will continue to surface so long as there are attempts to censor information. Here are a few notable examples that illustrate how the Streisand effect can manifests in a variety of contexts:

1. Martha Payne's School Lunches

In 2012, nine-year-old Martha Payne started a blog called "NeverSeconds" to document her school lunches. Her straightforward reviews and photos quickly gained attention, which, in turn, sparked discussions about the quality of school meals. However, when her local council attempted to ban her from posting pictures of her lunches—as the school's kitchen staff began fearing their job security—the story went viral. What began as a small blog soon turned into a global sensation; it ultimately garnered millions of views and led to improvements in school meals—not just in her school, but across the country. The attempt to suppress her blog only amplified the issue it highlighted.

2. The Banning of Cannibal Holocaust (1980)

The 1980 horror film Cannibal Holocaust became notorious for its graphic content, leading to it being banned in several countries. The film's extreme depiction of violence—including scenes of real-life animal cruelty—prompted authorities to censor it, believing that its availability would cause public outrage. However, these bans only fueled curiosity and increased demand for the film; it's now a cult classic among horror fans. The more the authorities tried to suppress it, the more people wanted to see what all the controversy was about—ultimately solidifying Cannibal Holocaust as an infamous piece of cinema history.

3. The 2010 WikiLeaks Prohibition

In 2010, WikiLeaks released a trove of classified U.S. diplomatic cables, which exposed majorly sensitive information about international relations. In response, several governments—including the United States—attempted to block access to the WikiLeaks website and discourage the dissemination of the documents. These efforts backfired spectacularly; the more governments tried to suppress the information, the more people were determined to access and share it. The documents spread like wildfire across the internet, and WikiLeaks gained global prominence.

4. Celebrities' Attempts to Delete Incriminating Social Media Posts

In the age of social media, many celebrities have tried to erase their digital footprints by deleting incriminating posts. For example, PewDiePie—one of the world's most popular YouTubers—deleted evidence of a live stream in which he used racial slurs, hoping to bury the incident. Similarly, Katie Hopkins attempted to delete her Islamophobic tweets following the Manchester terror attack. However, such actions like these only spur the public to dig deeper, resurfacing their posts (as well as older, more incriminating ones) and spreading them even further. In many cases, this leads to faster and more severe public backlash—with careers being damaged or even ended as a result. The Streisand effect, in these instances, turned attempts at damage control into accelerants for cancellation.

Do you do deep dives to find banned media? Take this test to find out if you've got morbid curiosity, and receive science-backed answers: Morbid Curiosity Scale

A similar version of this article can also be found on Forbes.com, here.