Who Decides if Trump Is Banned From Facebook? -- Update
06 May 2021 - 12:37AM
Dow Jones News
By Max Rust
Facebook Inc. established an oversight board in 2019 to review
content-moderation decisions and recommend policies. The
independent board is funded through an endowment, and its rulings
on community standards are binding.
The board operates like a Supreme Court for content. The
social-media company can refer cases, or individual users can
submit petitions for the board to consider. The board considers
whether Facebook erred in removing content or accounts from its
platforms or left intact content that should have been taken down
under company rules.
The social-media giant referred its decision about suspending
former President Donald Trump's accounts to the board in January,
and on Wednesday the board upheld the ban. Yet it also said
Facebook didn't follow clear procedures in its actions, and gave
the company six months to review its suspension of Mr. Trump. The
oversight board made its first rulings earlier this year and showed
a willingness to overturn the company's past content-moderation
decisions.
Facebook referred its decision about suspending former President
Donald Trump's accounts to the board in January, and a ruling is
expected Wednesday morning. The oversight board made its first
rulings earlier this year and showed a willingness to overturn the
company's past content-moderation decisions.
How the Oversight Board Operates
Who the board members are
A quarter of the 20 members are based in the U.S., and the rest
are located in different countries across five continents. The
group consists of law professors, human-rights advocates,
journalists and other professionals with backgrounds in areas
ranging from constitutional law to technology regulation. Facebook
has said that the board could expand to as many as 40 members in
the future. Members have three-year terms and may serve a maximum
of three terms.
How the board has decided
In most cases the board has ruled on, it has overturned
Facebook's decision to remove content. On Wednesday, it ruled on
Mr. Trump's case. His accounts were suspended from Facebook and
Instagram platforms following the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol
by a pro-Trump mob. Facebook has said it found that two posts by
the then-president violated the company's rules against praise and
support for the riot at the Capitol.
Write to Max Rust at max.rust@dowjones.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 05, 2021 10:22 ET (14:22 GMT)
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