The Facebook Oversight Board, colloquially known as the “Facebook Supreme Court,” received more than a million appeals from Facebook and Instagram users hoping to overturn censorship by the company, according to the Board’s first annual report.
The report, which reveals the extent of censorship on the platform, was published last week. The Board acknowledged that the million-plus figure represented an “enormous pent-up demand” for the ability to appeal censorship decisions by Facebook and Facebook-owned Instagram.
“The volume of cases submitted speaks to the importance of the Board’s work to users,” wrote the Board.
More than eight in ten of the appeals related to Facebook or Instagram’s policies on “bullying, hate speech, or violence and incitement,” according to the Board.
The full breakdown was:
- Bullying & harassment – 32.6 percent
- Hate speech –…
