Blocking light for a yeast starter

Hi folks. I have always wrapped my yeast starters with a small towel to block out light for no better reason than it's what I do for the fermenter. Now that I have moved to using a stir plate with a flask, keeping the towel in place has been a challenge. My question is there any reason to bother blocking out light? I generally chill the starter to drop out the yeast, and decant off the spent wort/beer. I also do not use any hops in my starter and I believe it is the hops that reacts to UV in the fermenter which creates skunkiness, right? Thanks for your opinions/advice!

no hops...no need to block light.

No need to block the light... I mean you are also aerating during fermentation of the starter too, which is also a no no when fermenting your beer. Typically people ferment their starters warmer too, about 75F... since you arent putting that "beer" into your brew, it really doesnt matter what you do.

You are ok

That's kind of what I thought, but thank you for confirming it. Plus it's kind of nice to watch the whirlpool!

Yep, you're right that light is mostly a concern when there's hops involved. Starters make yeast, not beer, so ignore all advice on how to make good beer and do everything in your power to encourage a lot of yeast production.