An independent board uncovers 'recurring' failures in moderation of election-related content on Meta

The board of directors tasked with overseeing content moderation related to the midterm elections at Meta Platforms identified "recurring enforcement failures" across the tech giant's various subsidiaries, such as Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, among others.

This body, which operates independently of Meta Platforms' executive leadership, reported that the violations detected were often cases of "overenforcement that suppresses political speech and underenforcement that undermines electoral integrity."

In a statement obtained by AFP, the oversight board noted "the removal of political activist accounts during protests in the U.S. ahead of the midterm elections."

"It’s clear that Meta must do more to ensure that its enforcement practices during elections are transparent and consistent," the independent board warned.

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It also found similar issues related to the elections in Brazil, involving accounts linked to a presidential candidate, without specifying the candidate's name.

A day ago, one of the candidates, the socialist Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, accused Meta Platforms of "interference" for restricting certain content of his on Instagram and WhatsApp. For its part, the tech giant has defended the equal treatment it has given to the campaigns of both the socialist leader and his main opponent, Flávio Bolsonaro.

Social media is a tool that is fully integrated into politics. Political parties and their representatives use it to give greater visibility to their opinions and messages, while many voters rely on it as their primary source of information.

Meta Platforms is under scrutiny as elections approach. The company led by Mark Zuckerberg has had to implement a series of measures and changes in recent years to try to shake off certain accusations of bias and partisanship.