Facebook Explains Process for Reviewing Bullying, Terrorism Posts, and Complexities Involved
Facebook's standards for reviewing online material worldwide, especially bullying, hate speech and terrorism, are "challenging and essential," and broad and complex, wrote Monika Bickert, head of the company's Global Policy Management, in a Tuesday blog post. Responding quickly to millions…
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of reports is hard but so is understanding context, she said. "Someone posts a graphic video of a terrorist attack. Will it inspire people to emulate the violence, or speak out against it? Someone posts a joke about suicide. Are they just being themselves, or is it a cry for help?" She said the company talks with experts about such issues and sometimes policies can seem "counterintuitive." Experts advise leaving live videos of people threatening suicide so assistance can be rendered but then taking them down to prevent copycats, she said. In training reviewers, Facebook uses "intentionally extreme" hypothetical cases to deal with the most problematic situations, Bickert said. "We face criticism from people who want more censorship and people who want less. We see that as a useful signal that we are not leaning too far in any one direction."