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The Weekly Takedown: 4 May 2018
A popular pig is censored in China...and more in this week's Takedown.
...before this when content was removed from Facebook users got a notice saying it had been flagged as inappropriate or that it somehow violated terms of service, indicating that the takedown came from another user’s report. Location-based blocking of videos and content for political reasons has usually come from the government via DNS-based blocking or similar practices, never from social media companies themselves.
Marianne Diaz Hernandez
The Weekly Takedown: 28 April 2018
It’s content takedown transparency week, as Facebook and YouTube release reports on how they enforce community guidelines.
Offline/Online Sources
Offline/Online is a series of Onlinecensorship.org data visuals exploring how content moderation practices by social media companies impact marginalized communi...
Onlinecensorship.org Launches Resource Kit for Journalists
This resource answers frequently asked questions and provides background information on various issue areas, including fake news, hate speech, and censorship of...
31 August 2017: The Weekly Takedown
In this week's update: Western firms consider censorship in Iran, another domain registrar pulls a neo-Nazi site, and more...
23 August 2017: The Weekly Takedown
After Charlottesville, debate over how companies should deal with hate speech is growing. Here are just a few of the pieces that addressed the topic this week.
17 August 2017: The Weekly Takedown
As white supremacists take to the streets, social media companies have begun to deny them a platform online.
10 August 2017: The Weekly Takedown
Politicians censor, and accuse platforms of censorship...and more in the latest Weekly Takedown.
2 August 2017: The Weekly Takedown
In the latest Weekly Takedown: Google's technosolutionism, why the #freethenipple movement is struggling, and more...
19 July 2017: The Weekly Takedown
Winnie the Pooh, terrorist content, and sacred cows are among the content censored this week by social media platforms...
12 July 2017: The Weekly Takedown
Criticism of Germany's hate speech law, Facebook's solutions to hate speech, and Twitter's policies...and more in the latest Weekly Takedown.
6 July 2017: The Weekly Takedown
Instagram tests AI, China bans livestreaming, and more...in this week's Takedown.
28 June 2017: The Weekly Takedown
In this week’s Takedown, major platforms form an anti-terrorism agreement, while Twitter gets heavy-handed on copyright infringement.
21 June 2017: The Weekly Takedown
In this week's Takedown: YouTube apologizes for censoring queer content, while Facebook mistakes anti-terror for terror.
31 May 2017: The Weekly Takedown
A leak of Facebook's internal rulebook is making waves; meanwhile, users continue to complain about YouTube's advertising policies.
27 April 2017: The Weekly Takedown
Thailand and Vietnam go after Facebook, Instagram goes after museums, and Twitter refuses to go after Trump...and more in this week's Takedown.
18 April 2017: The Weekly Takedown
Facebook is under fire this week after a murder was broadcast on its Live platform.
12 April 2017: The Weekly Takedown
This week's update shows how governments and corporate executives collaborate to limit access to content online.
31 March 2017: The Weekly Takedown
A look at Twitter's latest transparency report and YouTube's new "restricted" mode...and more in this week's Takedown.
24 March 2017: The Weekly Takedown
This week, we take a look at YouTube's latest restrictions and Twitter's takedown of more than half a million accounts.
1 March 2017: The Weekly Takedown
In this latest edition of the Weekly Takedown, we look at Facebook's latest announcement, an apparent new policy at Twitter, and the effect of online censorship...
2 February 2017: The Weekly Takedown
In this week's update: Facebook admits to automated bans, the company's role in Poland, and the toll that commercial content moderation takes on its workers.
25 January 2017: The Weekly Takedown
The censorship of a Russian media outlet, pirates posting porn, and more in this week's Takedown.
The Weekly Takedown: 18 January 2017
Censorship in Thailand, a lawsuit against Microsoft, and more in this week's Takedown.
The Weekly Takedown: 11 January 2017
This year's starting off on a censorious foot, with Apple blocking a popular news app in China. Find out more in this week's Takedown.
The Weekly Takedown: 7 December 2016
Silicon Valley companies join forces against terrorism, one Chinese's company's quest to take censorship abroad, and more.
30 November 2016: The Weekly Takedown
In this week's roundup, nudity and body image on Instagram, the "fake news" controversy, and why Facebook might be building a tool to censor in China.
23 November 2016: The Weekly Takedown
After a brief hiatus, the Weekly Takedown is back...and just in time for mass suspensions on Twitter!
Onlinecensorship.org launches second report, "Censorship in Context" (PDF)
Censorship in Context: Insights from Crowdsourced Data on Social Media Censorship
2 November 2016: The Weekly Takedown
Facebook dominates the headlines this week, with a new report on how executives are involved in content controversies and a letter from more than 70 rights grou...
26 October 2016: The Weekly Takedown
Will Facebook's new enforcement guidelines result in more freedom of expression on the platform?
Censorship against Palestinians brings Onlinecensorship.org back to its roots
News of an agreement between Facebook and the Israeli government shines a new light on the deactivation of several Palestinian editors' Facebook accounts.
12 October 2016: The Weekly Takedown
In this week's roundup: the Brazilian government can't take a joke, Facebook's "mass purge" of Kashmiri accounts, and more...
5 October 2016: The Weekly Takedown
Why did a cat photo result in a takedown? ...and other important questions in this week's roundup.
28 September 2016: The Weekly Takedown
YouTube gamifies content moderation, Twitter refuses a takedown request, and more in this week's takedown.
On Facebook, French Antiracists Fall Victim to Censorship
Among those affected by Facebook censorship are activists in France fighting against racism.
21 September 2016: The Weekly Takedown
Facebook's near-blanket ban on nudity remains a hot topic this week, while a new report on the company's censorship of French antiracists gives insight into the...
14 September 2016: The Weekly Takedown
Nudity on Facebook and Instagram feature heavily in this week's takedown.
Facebook backs down, will no longer censor the iconic ‘Napalm Girl’ war photo
Our Matthew Stender spoke to the Washington Post about Facebook's decision to stop banning the iconic 'Napalm Girl' war photo.
You Need to Care About Facebook Censoring an Iconic Vietnam War Photo
Nick Ut’s Pulitzer Prize-winning photograph of nine-year-old Kim Phúc fleeing from a napalm attack during the Vietnam war is one of the most iconic pieces of ph...
7 September 2016: The Weekly Takedown
This week, we look at algorithmic models to fight extremism, the growth of white nationalism on Twitter, and the ever-increasing censorship of Facebook pages an...
1 September 2016: The Weekly Takedown
In this week's takedown, we look at censorship in Turkey, protest against Facebook in the US, and a censored hand.
Blocked and banned by social media: When is it censorship?
In the San Francisco Chronicle, Marissa Lang explores whether bans on social media platforms ever amount to censorship.
24 August 2016: The Weekly Takedown
In this week's takedown, we look at the various ways in which companies are silencing political speech around the world.
August 17, 2016: The Weekly Takedown
Twitter makes waves for political censorship and Israel attempts to police the internet.
August 11, 2016: The Weekly Takedown
This week we look into issues surrounding the power balance between users and their platforms (and in some cases, the state).
4 August 2016: The Weekly Takedown
In this week's update, we look at how Instagram is dealing with harassment on its platform, two political crises for Facebook and Twitter's future use of corpor...
27 July 2016: The Weekly Takedown
In this week's update, we look at new features at Twitter, Facebook's block of a Wikileaks link, and more.
21 July: The Weekly Takedown
In this week's update: Facebook is accused of censoring Kashmiris, Twitter bans a journalist's account for racist and sexist tweets, and a 14-year-old blog myst...
13 July 2016: The Weekly Takedown
This week's headlines are filled with news about censorship on Facebook. We take a deeper look.
29 June 2016: The Weekly Takedown
This week, we look at the relationship between art and social media, political censorship in the Philippines and Singapore, and whether companies are using auto...
15 June 2016: The Weekly Takedown
In this week's edition: Companies grapple with hate speech, and AI gets its day in the limelight.
8 June 2016: The Weekly Takedown
In this week's edition: Bias against bodies, Israel seeks social media control, a Philippine journalist censored, and more.
European Commission's Hate Speech Deal With Companies Will Chill Speech
A new agreement between the European Commission and four major U.S. companies—Facebook, Google, Twitter, and Microsoft—went into effect yesterday.
Mark Zuckerberg is ‘dictator’ of Facebook ‘nation’: The Pirate Bay founder
Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg is the "dictator" of "the biggest nation in the world", the co-founder of file sharing site The Pirate Bay, told CNBC on Friday, a...
25 May 2016: How Facebook Can Shape Public Opinion
In this week's roundup, we look at how Facebook can shape the way its users see the world.
17 May 2016: The Weekly Takedown
Formerly known as "Last Week in Online Censorship," The Weekly Takedown shares stories of social media censorship from around the world.
Does social media have a censorship problem?
Index on Censorship spoke with team members Jillian C. York and Matthew Stender.
Facebook cracks down on Kurdish content
Facebook has banned Glasgow Girl Roza Salih for posting a photo of imprisoned Kurdish leader Abdullah Ocalan alongside a quote that read: “Liberating life is im...
The Secret Rules of the Internet
The murky history of moderation, and how it’s shaping the future of free speech
Facebook Is Embroiled In A Row With Activists Over “Censorship”
Facebook is embroiled in a row with a group of British activists who say it is “censoring” material that might offend the Turkish government.
Onlinecensorship.org launches first report (PDF)
Unfriending Censorship: Insights from four months of crowdsourced data on social media censorship
March 30, 2016: LGBT groups rejected from Facebook
In this week's roundup: LGBTQ groups take issue with Facebook policies and
March 23, 2016: Politics and patriarchy
In this week's roundup: A Turkish news site, topless women, childbirth imagery, an Indian political cartoon and more censored by Facebook.
March 15, 2016: Elective censorship
In this week's roundup: Instagram and Facebook censor mockery of Donald Trump and a German breast cancer campaign encourages breaking Facebook's nudity ban.
March 3, 2016: At the intersection of corporations and governments
In this week's roundup: Facebook erases culture in Indonesia, and meetings between the US Justice Department and social media companies make headlines.
February 23, 2016: A diverse mix of entities all experience Facebook censorship
In this week's roundup: A satirical magazine, marijuana dispensaries, and a Tunisian photographer all face Facebook censorship.
February 16, 2016: Facebook must face up to French censorship
Each week, we will share a roundup of notable news articles related to censorship on social networks.
February 9, 2016: Facebook thinks ice cream cones are too sexy
Each week, we will share a roundup of notable news articles related to censorship on social networks.
The big myth Facebook needs everyone to believe
Facebook says its community standards are inert, universal, agnostic to place and time.
Censorship in the social media age
Social media platforms dominate today’s information ecosystem.
On Criticising Charlie Hebdo, and the Perils of Selective Freedom of Speech
The author received a takedown notice from Facebook 24 hours after posting about Charlie Hebdo.
Why Google Quit China—and Why It’s Heading Back
When American Internet companies do business abroad, they are sometimes forced to do a repressive government’s dirty work.
Facebook’s disappearing act
Takedowns in Venezuela suggest its link-blocking function is used for political speech
Facebook apologises for marking story as spam
Facebook has clarified that a report from TheWire.in was mistakenly labelled as spam and has since been restored.
Social media, news, and the right to know
The idea for Onlinecensorship.org was born in 2011, when Facebook took down a link posted by popular band Coldplay.
A hard line for hardliners?
Instagram has taken a hard line on Iranian hardliners using the platform.
Between religion and the right to free expression
Arbitrating between religious values and the right to free expression requires a careful balancing act.
Is Twitter censoring a report on drone assassinations?
“It seems clear that Twitter is now engaged in censorship,” Appelbaum wrote me in an email. “Censorship without transparency is a deceptive practice."
Privatizing censorship in fight against extremism is risk to press freedom
Allowing ill-defined "extremist" content to be removed without judicial oversight or due process can too easily be used by states interested in limiting indepen...
Facebook is accused of censoring investigative journalism
"It's just the latest international case of alleged censorship by Facebook, which internet activists accuse of lacking transparency over what content it takes d...