Meta has been facing a lot of problems in the past few weeks in terms of moderation. First, the social media parent company was allegedly allowing anti-trans hate speech to spread on its platforms, and now, it is being accused of blocking reproductive health ads as well.
Meta Blocking Reproductive Health Ads
MSI Reproductive Choices and the Center for Countering Digital Hate have found that Meta has been restricting both reproductive health-related ads and content on its platforms, affecting places like Asia, Africa, and Latin America.
The Marketing Specialist from MSI Reproductive Choices, Whitney Chinogwenya, stated that women and girls are "being neglected by these major tech platforms who are putting their bottom lines above the public good."
She added that accurate online information is a lifeline for those seeking timely care and facts about their reproductive options, but anti-choice groups are able to spread "disinformation and toxic narratives online with impunity," as reported by Engadget.
It was even alleged that Meta and Google are profiting from the "dangerous propaganda." Among the countries that were impacted by the blocks was Mexico, wherein Meta prohibited abortion-related ad content given that the procedure was still banned in all 32 of its states.
MSI also saw that Meta was taking down ads in Nepal and Vietnam that promoted cervical cancer screenings and information on IUDs, as well as contraceptive pills. The organization claims that they were under a "blanket advertising ban" with no clear reason or justification.
What's worse was that MSI teams in Kenya, Ghana, and Nepal not only had difficulties getting in touch with Meta, but they were seeing pages claiming to be part of the organization. The imitation pages were even requesting money from potential clients.
The Center for Countering Digital Hate CEO Imran Ahmend, on the other hand, accused the company of mining the personal data of users in the Global South, yet failing to protect local human rights and civil liberties.
Meta's Hate Speech Problem
Meta also has to address the alleged lack of action in eliminating hate speech towards transgenders. Non-profit LGBTQ advocacy organization GLAAD said that anti-trans hate speech was still widespread across Instagram, Facebook, and Threads despite reporting them.
"Meta's hate and harassment policies prohibit targeting people on the basis of their protected characteristics, including sexual orientation and gender identity. So why are Instagram, Facebook, and Threads full of extreme anti-trans hate?" GLAAD CEO & President Sarah Kate Ellis said on X.
She also expressed that the company's "ongoing failure to enforce their own policies against anti-LGBTQ, and especially anti-trans hate, is simply unacceptable." An open letter facilitated by GLAAD and the Human Rights Campaign already gained 250 signatures asking to address the issue.
GLAAD's blog post mentioned that some of the people who signed we celebrities, public figures, and allies including Elliot Page, Laverne Cox, Jamie Lee Curtis, Shawn Mendes, Janelle Monáe, Gabrielle Union, Judd Apatow, Ariana Grande, and more.
The anti-trans posts were characterized by fear-mongering, lies, conspiracy theories, dehumanizing tropes, and violent rhetoric, most of which were posted by users with high follower counts who were said to only be boosting engagement and generating revenue.
