Facebook‘s Oversight Board is now accepting appeals from users that believe the social media service (or Instagram) has incorrectly removed their content for violating its terms and conditions. After years of social media sites deciding what content is displayed or removed without any oversight or consequences, something needed to change. As a result, an oversight entity was previously formed to overlook Facebook and Instagram’s content moderation decisions.
The Oversight Board is formed of people of different cultural and professional backgrounds, including, but not limited to, law professors, human rights activists, and content creators. After Facebook faced criticism of its handling of political posts ahead of the 2016 Presidential election, content curation moderation become a serious issue. Facebook has responded with many changes since then, including the formation of the Oversight Board.
If content is removed, the user has exhausted all of Facebook’s complaint processes, and the platform does not provide a valid reason for the removal, the Oversight Board is now an option. There are several ways the Oversight Board can help in these instances. Firstly, after the standard appeals processes, Facebook issues a reference ID that can be submitted to the Board for review. In the second case, Facebook recognizes a potential issue and recommends it to the Board for review itself. The third option is for extraordinary cases, where Facebook has the ability to refer the case to the Board and mandate an accelerated review. Lastly, Facebook can request advice on policy from the Board. In the first three cases, Facebook is bound to the Board’s decision, but in the last, Facebook will simply incorporate the verdict into its existing policies.
Don’t Expect Overnight Oversight Board Decisions
Millions of images and videos are posted on Facebook every single day. If even a small percentage of posts are removed for policy violations, it can make up a huge number of cases overall. However, it would be an extremely taxing job for the Board to go through so many posts each day and review them all to a sufficient degree. Therefore, the Board will choose appeals for review carefully, and based on various factors, such as the effect on users and significance. After an appeal is selected, a committee of five board members will be appointed to review and make an overall decision.
While it is refreshing that the Board is now technically active and ready to help with content appeals, there is no suggestion that Facebook users will immediately see any benefits. Besides the Board opting to select appeals to review based on specific factors, the Board expects a single review process to take anywhere up to 90 days to complete and Facebook to act on the decision. Therefore, although the Facebook Oversight Board has decided to open up the appeals process now, just weeks before the 2020 Presidential election, its first decisions might take up to three months to be reached.
