Instagram is reportedly making changes to its platform’s algorithm after it was accused by Palestinians of censoring their posts.
According to an article in The Financial Times (subscription required), the Facebook-owned social media platform is changing its algorithm to rank res-hared posts in Stories on an equal level to originals following the above criticisms.
Facebook, for its part, spoke to Engadget saying that (big surprise) there was no intentional effort to censor the posts. Instead, they said there were problems with the reach of re-shared posts and these weren’t limited to posts from Palestinians.
“We want to be really clear— this isn’t the case,” the Facebook spokesperson said. “This applied to any post that’s re-shared in stories, no matter what it’s about.”
Instagram in hot water, again
This isn’t the first time that Instagram has come under fire over claims of censorship. Over the last few weeks, both, Twitter and Facebook have been criticised for posts not showing – or showing up at all – about the conflict between Israel and Palestine.
Many activists, users and commentators have posited the allegation that the social media platforms are complicit in silencing pro-Palestinian voices.