wordpress blog stats
Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

, ,

Facebook says it inadvertently restricted a hashtag. Now it needs to tell us exactly how and why

By Prateek Waghre On 28th April, reports emerged that Facebook was 'temporarily hiding' posts using the hashtag 'ResignModi' because 'some content' in those posts went against their Community Standards. This seemed like a rather fitting development in a week where the future of free speech and dissent in India had already managed to capture international attention. MEITY had ordered Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube to remove/withhold 100-odd posts critical of how the Union government is handling COVID-19's second wave. While Twitter did disclose (as reported by Medianama) that it complied via the Lumen Database, the other platforms have not confirmed whether they received any such requests, nor whether they complied. Facebook did clarify that restricting the 'ResignModi' hashtag was a mistake and restored full visibility to it after a few hours. Restricting in this context meant that users couldn't search for posts with the hashtag but could post using it or view content that used it on their newsfeed. A 'mistake' Understandably, there is resistance to taking this clarification at face value. Levels of trust in the company have been on a sharp downward trajectory since the Wall Street Journal's reporting into its alleged closeness with the BJP. Neither has it acknowledged any actions it may or may not have taken in response to government requests this past week. It also didn't help that the message users saw is the same one it uses for hashtags that are deliberately blocked. E.g. sharpiegate or stopthesteal. [caption id="attachment_134680" align="aligncenter" width="210"] #ResignModi on Facebook…

Please subscribe/login to read the full story.
Written By

Free Reads

News

With GPS in every car, India's toll collection is going high-tech.

News

Google is currently undergoing the necessary procedures for the leasehold land, which is presently under the ownership of the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation.

News

The pilot project for which is being launched in 19 cities this year, with a plan to launch a full-fledged rollout next year.

MediaNama’s mission is to help build a digital ecosystem which is open, fair, global and competitive.

Views

News

NPCI CEO Dilip Asbe recently said that what is not written in regulations is a no-go for fintech entities. But following this advice could...

News

Notably, Indus Appstore will allow app developers to use third-party billing systems for in-app billing without having to pay any commission to Indus, a...

News

The existing commission-based model, which companies like Uber and Ola have used for a long time and still stick to, has received criticism from...

News

Factors like Indus not charging developers any commission for in-app payments and antitrust orders issued by India's competition regulator against Google could contribute to...

News

Is open-sourcing of AI, and the use cases that come with it, a good starting point to discuss the responsibility and liability of AI?...

You May Also Like

News

Google has released a Google Travel Trends Report which states that branded budget hotel search queries grew 179% year over year (YOY) in India, in...

Advert

135 job openings in over 60 companies are listed at our free Digital and Mobile Job Board: If you’re looking for a job, or...

News

By Aroon Deep and Aditya Chunduru You’re reading it here first: Twitter has complied with government requests to censor 52 tweets that mostly criticised...

News

Rajesh Kumar* doesn’t have many enemies in life. But, Uber, for which he drives a cab everyday, is starting to look like one, he...

MediaNama is the premier source of information and analysis on Technology Policy in India. More about MediaNama, and contact information, here.

© 2008-2021 Mixed Bag Media Pvt. Ltd. Developed By PixelVJ

Subscribe to our daily newsletter
Name:*
Your email address:*
*
Please enter all required fields Click to hide
Correct invalid entries Click to hide

© 2008-2021 Mixed Bag Media Pvt. Ltd. Developed By PixelVJ