Recent data reveals a significant decline in audience engagement for Palestinian news organizations on Facebook, coinciding with the outbreak of the Israel-Gaza conflict, raising concerns over potential biases in social media moderation policies.
The Impact of Facebook's Restrictions on Palestinian News Outlets During the Ongoing Conflict
The Impact of Facebook's Restrictions on Palestinian News Outlets During the Ongoing Conflict
A look into how Meta's moderation policies are affecting the visibility of Palestinian journalism amidst the Israel-Gaza war, according to recent research.
Facebook's ability to restrict news from Palestinian territories has drawn significant attention, particularly during the ongoing Israel-Gaza conflict. According to recent research conducted by BBC, Palestinian news outlets—especially those operating in Gaza and the West Bank—have experienced a dramatic decrease in audience engagement since the conflict escalated in October 2023. The analysis highlights a 77% drop in engagement metrics, such as comments, reactions, and shares, for Palestinian news platforms like Palestine TV and the Wafa news agency.
Amidst the war, local journalists have reported feeling "shadow-banned," indicating their posts are not reaching audiences effectively. For instance, Palestine TV, which has a substantial following of 5.8 million on Facebook, documented a 60% reduction in visibility for its posts since the conflict intensified. Comparatively, Israeli news organizations managed to boost their engagement by around 37% during the same timeframe.
Meta, the umbrella company for Facebook, has defended its practices, claiming the allegations of suppressing specific voices are "unequivocally false." The tech giant noted it faced a balancing act between ensuring free speech and addressing concerns regarding Hamas, which is designated as a dangerous organization.
Moreover, internal investigations into moderation policies led to findings that biases might stem from a lack of Arabic-language proficiency among moderation staff. For instance, benign Arabic phrases have been misinterpreted by the system. Contrasting this, Arabic-language news outlets based outside the conflict zones—like Sky News Arabia—experienced nearly a 100% increase in engagement.
Leaked documents have also suggested a swift escalation in moderation against Palestinian comments on Instagram, another platform owned by Meta, following the onset of hostilities. Affected employees highlight that within a week of the conflict's escalation, the moderation algorithms turned more aggressive towards Palestinian user comments.
Despite the inherent risks, many Palestinian journalists continue to chronicle their reality, though they grapple with Content Restrictions and challenges in sharing crucial information. The ongoing loss of journalistic lives—137 reported since October 2023—exemplifies the danger yet highlights the necessity of their work in a media landscape increasingly influenced by social media dynamics.
