Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri Plans to Amplify Black Voices After Shadow Banning Accusations

As a result of the George Floyd and Black Lives Matter protests, there has been a surge in activism beyond the streets—it’s hitting social media platforms too. For those who aren’t able to demonstrate, apps like TikTok and Instagram have been a God send for people trying to educate themselves of the issues, stay aware of current events, and learn more ways to get involved in the movement. But unfortunately, some of the most important voices on these apps are struggling to be heard—TikTok recently came under fire for silencing #BLM content (the issue has since been fixed), and now Instagram has been accused of doing the same.

After #BlackoutTuesday happened, people on Twitter called Instagram out for shadow banning information pertaining to the Black Lives Matter movement. And in case you’re wondering, shadow banning by definition is the practice of blocking users or content in hashtags to make it difficult for other users to find and share on any given platform.

Just discovered the black lives matter hashtag on Instagram is shadowbanned what the fuck is the meaning of this @instagram

My entire Instagram feed is just plain black squares when it was previously full of news and resources. It’s not helping the algorithm amplify black voices, it’s silencing them in an effort to let everyone know that you’re silencing yourself and I feel that’s counterproductive.

Everyone tell @tmz that @instagram is muting my voice please. I’ve had over 50 complaints about how followers can no longer find me. Or posts they commented on and their comments removed. I thought we were supposed to be #amplifymelenatedvoices not continuing to silence them.

Following these accusations, Instagram CEO, Adam Mosseri made a post on Instagram’s Blog page outlining a plan on how going forward his team will examine harassment, account verification, content distribution, and algorithmic bias so Black voices on Instagram get the visibility they deserve. In the statement, Adam wrote:

Going forward, Adam will be looking into how the LGBTQ+, body positivity, and art communities on Instagram can be helped by the new plan as well.

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