Instagram bug or ‘shadow-ban’? Meta responds to pro-Palestine story suppression claims

WEB DESK: Meta acknowledged a bug on Instagram that impacted the visibility of users’ stories expressing support for Palestine. Users reported that their stories, particularly those related to the conflict in Gaza, were effectively hidden from followers, raising concerns of censorship.

Several accounts claimed they were “shadow-banned,” a term used when posts are covertly reduced in visibility without the user’s knowledge.

Journalist Azmat Khan shared on X (formerly Twitter), “After posting an Instagram story about the war in Gaza yesterday, my account was shadowbanned. Many colleagues and journalist friends have reported the same. It’s an extraordinary threat to the flow of information and credible journalism about an unprecedented war.”

After posting an Instagram story about the war in Gaza yesterday, my account was shadowbanned. Many colleagues and journalists friends have reported the same. It’s an extraordinary threat to the flow of information and credible journalism about an unprecedented war…

— Azmat Khan (@AzmatZahra) October 15, 2023

Read More: How to receive regular calls and messages on ‘non-PTA’ iPhones

Several other users also reported the ‘shadow-banning’ by the social media platform.

Lmao Instagram shadow banning me cause of my posts on Palestine is really something

— Falala (@Faty_Alfa) October 14, 2023

lol instagram is really shadow banning posts/stories related to palestine… i’ve had 0 views on all my stories when usually i get a couple within a minute of posting a story…

— rabz (@rabiachoudhry) October 14, 2023

Meanwhile, in a statement released on Sunday, Meta acknowledged the bug, attributing it to a glitch affecting “all Stories” that re-shared other users’ Reels and posts. The bug led to a significant reduction in reach for these stories, impacting accounts globally. Meta emphasized that the issue was not related to the content’s subject matter and assured users that it was promptly fixed.

Meta statement on concerns about the visibility of Stories.

“We identified a bug impacting all Stories that re-shared Reels and Feed posts, meaning they weren’t showing up properly in people’s Stories tray, leading to significantly reduced reach. This bug affected accounts…

— Andy Stone (@andymstone) October 15, 2023

This incident adds to the criticism Meta has faced regarding its handling of pro-Palestinian content. In 2021, during the conflict between Israeli police and Palestinians at Al-Aqsa Mosque, Instagram removed posts and blocked hashtags related to the mosque, mistakenly associating it with terrorism.

An external audit commissioned by Meta later revealed that the company had denied Palestinian users their freedom of expression and had heavier censorship on Arabic-language posts during the 2021 Israel-Hamas conflict. Meta stated that it was implementing recommendations from the audit.

Over the years, journalists, activists, and celebrities, including model Bella Hadid, have expressed concerns about perceived censorship of pro-Palestine posts. Hadid revealed that posts about Palestine led to immediate shadow-banning, significantly reducing the visibility of her content.