The Streisand Effect: What It Is & How to Avoid It

Q: How is blowback different from the Streisand Effect?

Blowback is a broader term for any unwanted and often unseen consequence of an action, originally coined by the CIA to describe the unintended fallout from covert operations. The Streisand Effect is a specific form of blowback where an attempt to suppress or hide information causes it to become far more widely seen than it ever would have been otherwise.

Q: What is astroturfing and how can it backfire?

Astroturfing is when a person or organization manufactures the appearance of grassroots support where little or none genuinely exists — the term comes from AstroTurf, the synthetic grass brand. Common examples include fake reviews, paid blogger opinions, and planted news articles. The unintended consequences of astroturfing can include blowback, damaging the very credibility the effort was meant to build.

Q: What kinds of actions are most likely to trigger the Streisand Effect?

Legal activity is one of the most common triggers, since cease and desist letters and lawsuits are matters of public record that journalists and internet users can easily amplify. In Barbra Streisand's case, the photo had only been viewed six times before her lawsuit transformed it into a viral story seen by hundreds of thousands of people within a month. Even non-legal corporate actions, like demanding a YouTube user delete a video or asking a media outlet to swap out unflattering photos, can set off the same cycle.

Q: Why did Barbra Streisand's lawsuit backfire so badly?

Streisand sued the California Coastal Records Project over an aerial photo of her Malibu home, arguing it violated California's anti-paparazzi law — but the photo had only been viewed six times before the lawsuit was filed. The legal action drew massive media attention, and more than 420,000 people visited the site within a month. Even though the case was eventually thrown out, her privacy was far more compromised than it ever would have been had she done nothing.

Q: How can you suppress unwanted content online without triggering the Streisand Effect?

The key is to avoid going directly to the source of the negative content, especially through lawyers, since legal action dramatically increases the risk of triggering the Streisand Effect. Instead, focus on identifying and promoting positive content that already exists to diversify search results and naturally push unwanted content down. This approach manipulates search visibility without drawing attention to the content you want people to stop seeing.

What Is the Streisand Effect?

When attempts to hide information make it more visible, you may be facing the Streisand Effect — and your reputation strategy needs to change fast.

Kent Campbell December 13, 2015 · Updated February 21, 2026 · 5 min read

Summary of the Streisand Effect

Sometimes online reputation management clients make things hard on themselves inadvertently by complaining publicly about something that, initially, isn’t getting much publicity. The act of complaining creates a cycle where the negative they so badly wanted to hide becomes a huge problem that it otherwise would not have because of the company’s actions. This is the Streisand Effect, and there are strategies to counter it.

How the Streisand Effect came to be

On May 30th, 2003 it was reported that Barbra Streisand sued a man claiming an invasion of her privacy because he had shared aerial pictures of her Malibu home. Streisand inadvertently attracted more attention to her home by trying to suppress the images. The Streisand Effect is when the action of suppressing something to reduce or remove visibility it causes the opposite to happen.

Here are some of the highlights of the case:

The photo was posted as part of the California Coastal Records Project, which documents erosion along the California coastline with aerial photos taken from a helicopter
But Streisand filed a suit in Los Angeles County Superior Court, saying posting of her home’s photo violates California’s “anti-paparazzi” law because the photographer didn’t ask her permission
Within a month of the lawsuit, more than 420,000 people visited the site

It is not uncommon for attempts to suppress information online to end up making the information more popular, like with the Streisand Effect. Similar terms include blowback and astroturfing.

What’s Blowback?

Streisand used the American legal system to attempt to suppress the images. This included cease and desist letters and other public actions. Sometimes unintended consequences happen due to operations intended to be covert. Blowback is any unwanted and often unseen effect. Originally coined by the CIA, Blowback is similar to the Streisand Effect.

What’s Astroturfing?

Astroturfing occurs when an entity attempts to develop grassroots support where little to none exists. The term is a play on the brand AstroTurf, synthetic carpeting designed to resemble natural grass. Astroturfing can be used to establish credibility without any legitimate backing (political, financial, or otherwise).

The unintended consequences of astroturfing can include blowback. When politicians hire people to act as demonstrators in order to create an air of dissension, it is astroturfing. Online astroturfing is more commonly revealed as:

Fake reviews
The opinions of paid bloggers
Planted news articles intended to alter how the public perceives a person, company, or brand

What Triggers the Streisand Effect?

In a nutshell, anything that is made a big deal can become a bigger deal.

The Streisand Effect is sometimes triggered by legal activity around the suppression or obfuscation of information.

In the original example, Barbra Streisand had her attorney issue cease and desist letters which triggered the avalanche of public press. The image had apparently only been viewed six times at that point. Her lawsuit against the California Coastal Records Project began a media avalanche that went viral because many saw her actions as harmful to freedom of speech.

In the end, the image was viewed millions of times. Even though the case was later thrown out, Streisand’s privacy had been far more compromised than it would have been had she not brought the suit in the first place.

Even Google can be the subject of the Streisand Effect. For example, they removed the Google Glass Facebook page as well as other references online. Immediately the internet noticed and fingers flew across keyboards with articles being posted online at a fierce rate. The removal of information caused it to become even more noticeable.

Examples of the Streisand Effect

Glenn Beck Video

Glenn Beck’s search results returned “Glenn Beck Murder” back in 2009 due to the appearance of a website calledGlennBeckRapedAndMurderedAYoungGirlIn1990.com (no longer active). Glenn Beck sued, and the internet responded with a really creepy video about Glenn Beck. The video is still up because parody in non-commercial use is legal.

Beyonce Unflattering Photos

The Streisand Effect can even happen to Beyonce. After some unflattering photos of Beyonce appeared on Buzzfeed, her PR team politely contacted Buzzfeed to ask for better images. Instead of complying, Buzzfeed posted the request online. Remember, Buzzfeeds entire purpose is to attract viewers, the letter was their ticket to viral stardom. The internet responded, of course, in a very unflattering way.

Samsung Galaxy Batteries

In December 2013, YouTube user Ghostlyrich uploaded video proof that his Samsung Galaxy S4 battery had spontaneously caught fire. Samsung had demanded proof before honoring its warranty. Once Samsung learned of the YouTube video, it added additional conditions to its warranty, demanding ghostlyrich delete his video, promise not to upload similar material, officially absolve the company of all liability, waive his right to bring a lawsuit, and never make the terms of the agreement public. Instead of minimizing viewership, Samsung’s attempt to cover up the video only made it more popular.

How to Prevent the Streisand Effect

Suppressing online content can be tricky, and the risk of inadvertently attracting more attention to the content you’re trying to hide can be tricky. However, there are a few ways to manipulate search results to your advantage without going straight to the source of unwanted content. Because whenever lawyers are involved, the chances of the Streisand Effect happening to you skyrocket.

Here are some dos and don’ts to suppress online content:

DO identify positive existing content. Focus promotion efforts on positive content that already exists. This can help diversify search results and hopefully draw some attention away from the negative unwanted content.
DO create additional positive content, both on your own website and on relevant third-party sites.
DON’T file a lawsuit. If you can help it, avoid legal action. This oftentimes incites more anger in the original poster, leading them to share details of any claims filed, which can strengthen their original content and make it more popular.
DO check for violations to Google’s Terms of Service. Google will remove content from their search results under certain circumstances.

The Online Reputation Minefield

Whether it be nice letters or threats of defamation, the internet loses its mind at even a whiff of censorship. People seem to feel that all information should be free. And in this post-privacy era where online reputation is more important than ever, we all walk the razor’s edge when trying to gain some control over our lives online.