Jason Kincaid is reporting at TechCrunch that the gossip site Juicy Campus is closing. He reports that the site claims the closure is for financial reasons and also points out the libelous and defamatory nature of some of the speech on the site. The post is quite good, so I will quote from it at length. Quoting from the page.

JuicyCampus, a website that invites students to post anonymous (and often-times libelous) messages about their peers, is headed for the Deadpool. In a blog post on the company’s website, founder Matt Ivester blames the site’s demise on a lack of revenue, despite steady growth:

Unfortunately, even with great traffic and strong user loyalty, a business can’t survive and grow without a steady stream of revenue to support it. In these historically difficult economic times, online ad revenue has plummeted and venture capital funding has dissolved. JuicyCampus’ exponential growth outpaced our ability to muster the resources needed to survive this economic downturn, and as a result, we are closing down the site as of Feb. 5, 2009.

I wouldn’t be surprised if some of the site’s advertising issues stemmed from the fact that it often featured incredibly hateful and mean-spirited content that advertisers were hesitant to be associated with. Ivester has long maintained that the site was for ‘Juicy’ gossip, not mean insults, but with top threads including “Biggest Whore At Tulane”, it was hardly a place for light-hearted fun. In light of the overwhelmingly negative comments found on the site, some schools began banning JuicyCampus entirely, leading Ivester to claim that they were “joining the ranks of the Chinese government in internet censorship, and spitting in the faces of everyone who believes in free discourse online”.

Ivester may also be growing increasingly worried about the litigation threats the site receives for defamation and libel. Ivester has claimed legal protection, citing the fact that he didn’t author any of the defamatory posts, but he may not be too eager to put those claims to test in court.

 Mashable also has the news. The Mashable post points to anti-cyberbullying efforts as possible contributors to the site closing. They also state that other gossip sites have been unable to successfully monetize:

With similar services, like Camfess, BoredAt, and CubeVoice, biting the dust, we have to wonder if anonymous gossip sites are a thing of the past. I can’t say that I’ll miss the genre of web sites, but then again Craigslist, the safe haven for anonymity lovers, isn’t going anywhere.

Reputation.com Blog has covered Juicy Campus in the past, profiling the hurt and hate anonymous slander engenders. Reputation.com promotes a safe and secure internet experience for all users and applauds Juicy Campus for ending the defamatory practices of their site and acting responsibly in this matter. We wish Mr. Ivester the best of luck in his future endeavors.