Instagram Censorship

Instagram is a free photo and video sharing social media platform that allows users to connect with their followers or with a select group of friends. Its mission is “to capture and share the world’s moments.” From small businesses to large institutions, news organizations to cultural hubs, celebrities, photographers, musicians, and influencers, Instagram allows its users to share parts of their life through posts, stories, short-form videos, live streaming, and direct messages. You can create visual impressions through taking, editing, and publishing content, as well as interact with your content via likes, comments, shares, and saves. With an audience of more than one billion active users, Instagram has become one of the most popular social media platforms among millennials. Nearly 70% of its total population are under 35 years old. Despite its strong presence, there have been continuous controversies regarding Instagram's decisions on censorship as well as the outcomes of its censorship. Its algorithm has come under fire for implementing racist decisions and double standards.

Instagram logo

Background

Instagram was developed in San Francisco and launched in 2010 by Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger. Taking only eight weeks for software engineers to develop, Instagram gained attraction rapidly. Its simple interface and easy-to-use features made it widely popular. In less than two years, Meta (formerly Facebook) acquired the company for $1 billion in cash and stock. While user growth has continued to increase since the Meta acquisition, the platform has several ethical concerns over censorship. Over the years, questions about who and what Instagram can and should censor were raised. From Instagram blaming its algorithm’s censoring of activists on a “technical bug” to the rolling out of its “Sensitive Content Control,” which allows users to set limits around how much potentially sensitive content they might see on their Explore page, the line between Instagram’s guidelines and policies has become more ambiguous than it ever has been. Countries like China, Russia, Iran and Uganda have banned Instagram, temporarily or permanently. Instagram bans in these countries are largely due to the desire to censor information, especially during times of conflict, protest or uprising.

Ethical Implications

Instagram falls under frequent criticism for the way that it blocks or removes content on the platform. The site provides limited information about how it makes decisions about unacceptable content, leading to worries that the systems could be biased.