Tech
Social media giant cracks down on hashtags associated with Bucha killings
Social media giant Meta is taking new measures to block hashtags associated with the killings in the Ukrainian city of Bucha
Videos showing the corpses of many people shot at close range in the previously Russian-occupied town were seen on many of Meta’s platforms.
Meta’s spokesman Andy Stone says the ban was applied by the company’s automated systems that search for violent imagery on Facebook and Instagram.
Hashtags including #Bucha and #BuchaMassacre were blocked
Stone says “This happened automatically because of the graphic content people posted using these hashtags. When we were made aware of the issue yesterday, we acted quickly to unblock the hashtags”.
Meta allows such content for the purpose of raising awareness of potential human rights abuses only blocking content that is extremely graphic or portrays suffering in a positive light.
The issue has been recognised by several human rights groups who have spoken against Meta’s removal of violent content during conflicts.
They condemn Meta for deleting critical evidence of war crimes.
Stone says the company is looking into preserving this content even after it is removed.