<ul><li>The <keyword id="5482723" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Oversight-Board">Oversight Board</keyword> will have the final word on what content Facebook and Instagram should allow or remove, based on respect for freedom of expression and human rights. </li><li><keyword id="1508987" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Sudhir-Krishnaswamy">Sudhir Krishnaswamy</keyword> is the only representative from India on the board.</li><li>Krishnaswamy is the India Vice Chancellor of the National Law School of India University, and co-founder of the Center for Law and Policy Research.</li></ul>Facebook <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/facebook-announced-the-first-20-members-of-its-oversight-board-that-will-decide-what-controversial-content-is-allowed-on-facebook-and-instagram/articleshow/75586376.cms">recently</a> announced the list of 20 members on its newly created Oversight Board. The Oversight Board will have the final word on what content Facebook and Instagram should allow or remove, based on respect for freedom of expression and human rights. Comprising independent members from around the world, the board also has a seat for Sudhir Krishnaswamy, the only representative from India. Krishnaswamy is the India Vice Chancellor of the National Law School of India University, and co-founder of the Center for Law and Policy Research, an advocacy organization that works for the rights of LGBTQ+ and transgender persons in India through impact litigation. The Oversight Board will begin hearing cases soon, although Facebook is still trying to figure out how the board will function and the operational challenges that will come its way because of the coronavirus pandemic. But the decisions made by the board will be made public, and Facebook will respond to them publicly. “We will publish our decisions on our website, while protecting the identity and privacy of those involved,” said Facebook. The 45-year old Krishnaswamy is one of the most noted academics in India. A visiting professor in the Ivy leagues of the world, he was also a legal consultant in the Prime Ministers Committee of Infrastructure, Planning Commission in 2006. “Content moderation and content control has been a problem in most jurisdictions around the world, India being one of the most affected. Content is currently being controlled by either private companies or the government. Creating a mechanism to oversee a private company is a radical decision; if this works, it provides us with a new way of handling content moderation for the future. It’s as important to democracy as it is to the market,” said Krishnaswamy. A Rhodes scholar and an Oxford graduate, Krishnaswamy was previously the director of the School of Policy and Governance and Professor of Law and Politics at Azim Premji University, as well as the Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Visiting Professor of Indian Constitutional Law at Columbia Law School. He is also an author of the book “Democracy and Constitutionalism in India”. See Also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/goa-may-be-the-new-thailand-says-ritesh-agarwal-as-oyo-pivots-to-a-new-strategy-driving-and-not-flying-destinations/articleshow/75591960.cms">“Goa may be the new Thailand, ” says Ritesh Agarwal as OYO pivots to a new strategy ⁠— ‘driving, and not flying, destinations’</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/health/news/biocon-chairperson-kiran-mazumdar-shaw-says-indias-covid-19-vaccines-will-enter-clinical-trial-in-9-months/articleshow/75591805.cms">Don’t hold your breath ⁠— Biocon founder Kiran Mazumdar Shaw says India's Covid-19 vaccine will enter clinical trials in 9 months</a>

Meet the Indian on Facebook's oversight board which will police content on Facebook and Instagram

New Delhi, Oct 4 (IANS) While an independent Facebook oversight board with 20 external members of the society (including one from India), formed in May this year to offer a new model of content moderation for Facebook and Instagram, is yet to begin functioning, a new alternative "the Real Facebook Oversight Board" has come into existence. Formed last week by critics of the social network, the organisers slammed Facebook for a weak and inconsistent approach to threats or implications of violence. They said Facebook has not done enough to counter premature claims of a Republican victory this November presidential election, reports Forbes. "Our group has come together for one purpose: We demand comprehensive action to ensure that Facebook cannot be weaponized to undermine the vote and with it American democracy," said Shoshana Zuboff, professor emerita at Harvard Business School and author of the book titled "The Age of Surveillance Capitalism". The original Facebook oversight board has Sudhir Krishnaswamy, Vice Chancellor of the National Law School of India University in Bengaluru and the only member in the board from India. Currently content moderation is done within the company. Besides using technology to bar harmful content from appearing on the sites, they also have a human moderation system. The Facebook oversight board will give users a chance to appeal against any wrongful removal of their content. The decisions of the board will be binding on Facebook and Instagram. "There are three possible channels through which cases can come to the Oversight Board. The Facebook content moderation team may itself refer a case to the board or a user may bring up a case and potentially even the Oversight Board itself might feel that a particular case should come to it," Krishnaswamy told IANS in a recent interview. Meanwhile, the members of the alternative Facebook oversight board warned that future regulation and a possible forced break-up could come for Facebook. "We're not waiting for another election to go wrong. We believe accountability in real-time is vital," they said. In November 2018, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced a new 'independent' body to provide outside oversight and in May this year, the first 20 members of its new Oversight Board were announced. "But it's still not operational and even if it was, it only has limited powers to rule on whether content that was taken down should go back up. And once a case has been referred to it, this self-styled 'Supreme Court' can take up to 90 days to reach a verdict. This doesn't even begin to scratch the surface of the many urgent risks the platform poses to the upcoming election," said the new alternative board. According to Krishnaswamy, the Facebook board will also review whether Facebook and Instagram will implement its decisions. "Both Facebook and Instagram as well as their CEO have given a clear unequivocal undertaking that the decisions of the board will be implemented. We are confident that our decisions will be implemented," he said. However, Krishnaswamy, who is also Co-Founder of the Center for Law and Policy Research which works to advance constitutional values for everyone, including the LGBTQ+ and transgender persons in India, added that whether in the physical world or the Internet universe, there will always be some "compliance problem". --IANS na/

Critics challenge Facebook with their own 'real oversight board'

<ul><li>The decision will set a precedent for how Facebook handles posts and propaganda by other world leaders around the world.</li><li>In India, too, this will be watched closely by both the ruling administration under Prime Minister <keyword id="6354477" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Narendra-Modi">Narendra Modi</keyword>, as well as by his detractors.</li><li>It may also have a bearing on how these platforms are regulated in each country in the future.</li></ul>Former American President <keyword id="6354484" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Donald-Trump">Donald Trump</keyword> was ousted from Facebook and Instagram on January 6 following the violent attack on Capitol Hill. The move to block Trump from reaching out to his millions of followers had unsettled many around the world, not just the Republicans in the US, who saw it as a threat to free speech While Twitter stuck to its guns, and banned Trump permanently, Facebook said its recently-formed Oversight Board ⁠— an eminent group of lawyers, academics, journalists, and world leaders ⁠— would decide on Trump’s future on social media. The decision will set a precedent for how Facebook handles posts and propaganda by other world leaders around the world. “The Board will announce its decision on the case concerning former US President Trump's indefinite suspension from Facebook and Instagram in the coming weeks,” the committee said in a statement, which also mentioned that it had received 9,000 responses so far. “The Board’s commitment to carefully reviewing all comments has extended the case timeline, in line with the Board’s bylaws. We will share more information soon,” it added. Why it matters in India? In India, too, this will be watched closely by both the ruling administration under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, as well as by his detractors. Most recently, on April 16, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2021/apr/15/facebook-india-bjp-fake-accounts">The Guardian</a> reported that Sophie Zhang, citing a 6,600-word memo from a former Facebook employee, that the social media giant allowed the misuse of its platform by political leaders from around the world, including those from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in India, to manipulate voters. A similar controversy erupted in August last year, when Ankhi Das, the then public policy executive for Facebook in India, was accused by <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/facebook-hate-speech-india-politics-muslim-hindu-modi-zuckerberg-11597423346">the Wall Street Journal</a> of giving the Hindu nationalists in India a free ride with hate speech. Ankhi Das had to step down. The current dispensation in India has been uncomfortable with the alleged liberal bias of the social media giants long before Trump was removed both from The White House as well as from these platforms. In May 2020, at the height of the violence following the murder of George Floyd, the 46-year old African American in Minnesota, Minneapolis, Twitter decided to remove some tweets from the US President “in public interest”. It caused some curious reactions even in India. “Twitter is no longer pretending to be a neutral platform… So, there is clearly need (sic) for regulating them. However, every curb brings its own wrinkles. Our own first amendment is a good example,” <a href="https://twitter.com/sanjeevsanyal/status/1266283515978510343">said</a> Sanjeev Sanyal, India’s Principal Economic Advisor. The final decision of the Oversight Board, comprising of members like the former Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt, former European Court of Human Rights judge András Sajó, Internet Sans Frontières Executive Director Julie Owono, Yemeni Nobel Peace Prize laureate Tawakkol Karman as well as Sudhir Krishnaswamy, a constitution expert from India, will be watched closely. It may also have a bearing on how these platforms are regulated in each country in the future. SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/education/news/thousands-of-igcse-students-are-anxiously-awaiting-clarity-on-board-exams-set-to-start-on-april-27/articleshow/82104477.cms">Thousands of IGCSE students are anxiously awaiting clarity on board exams set to start on April 27</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/vcs-say-10-unicorns-in-4-months-may-seem-too-small-by-the-end-of-this-year/articleshow/82097709.cms">VCs say 10 unicorns in 4 months may seem too small by the end of this year</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/health/news/check-out-covid-19-vaccine-distribution-across-states-in-india-in-four-charts/slidelist/82100394.cms">Four charts show how COVID-19 vaccines are being distributed in India</a>

Facebook’s Oversight Board has over 9,000 responses in the case related to Donald Trump’s suspension from the platform⁠— a decision is coming soon

<ul><li>The <keyword id="6354576" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="facebook">Facebook</keyword> Oversight Board has chosen the first six cases it will rule on, out of the 20,000 complaints received since October 2020. </li><li>The board is an independent body that reviews Facebook’s content moderation decisions. </li><li>It was announced in 2018, and includes 20 members, out of which there is one representative from India. </li></ul>The Facebook oversight board, sometimes nicknamed the ‘Supreme Court of Facebook’, has a daunting task ahead. Out of the 20,000 complaints it has received, it will rule on six cases involving content removed under Facebook’s <keyword id="6406418" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="hate-speech">hate speech</keyword> rules, misinformation policies, and nudity ban. The Facebook Oversight Board also has a representative from India - <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/sudhir-krishnaswamy-on-facebook-oversight-board-which-will-control-controversial-content-on-facebook-and-instagram/articleshow/75593282.cms">Sudhir Krishnaswamy</a>. <div type="javascript" title="Facebook" contenttype="Video"><cdata><![CDATA[<iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FBusinessInsiderIndia%2Fvideos%2F550806735624097%2F&show_text=0&width=560" width="560" height="315" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowFullScreen="true"></iframe>]]></cdata></div> Announced in 2018, this committee's mission is to oversee the moderation of Facebook, in order to "guarantee freedom of expression through independent judgment." After months of delay, the Supervisory Board and its 20 members seem finally ready to decide on what content to remove, and what to leave online. Since October 2020, users of the social network have had the opportunity to appeal to the independent committee if they believe that one of their publications has been unfairly withdrawn by the moderation teams. According to Facebook, <a href="https://www.oversightboard.com/news/719406882003532-announcing-the-oversight-board-s-first-cases-and-appointment-of-trustees/">more than 20,000 complaints</a> have already been sent for examination. In choosing the first six cases to be dealt with, the Council prioritized those "which have the potential to affect many people around the world, are of critical importance to public debate or raise major questions about Facebook's rules." Each case will be studied by a jury made up of five Council members, at least one of whom will come from the region involved in the content, in order to ensure a better understanding of the situation. In total, the study of a case may take up to 90 days. As a first step, people and organizations outside the Supervisory Board and Facebook will be able to publicly comment on the case, in order to provide useful information and their expertise. Public comments on the first six cases can be sent until Tuesday, December 8, 2020. The jury will then carry out additional research on the specificities of the region concerned, and request the help of translators if necessary. Once all this information is in hand, the Council will make its final decision. Facebook is required to implement decisions made by members of <keyword id="9807774" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="the-oversight-committee">the Oversight Committee</keyword>, as well as to "respond publicly to any policy recommendations made by the board." The decisions of the "supreme court" of Facebook could therefore set a precedent and modify the moderation policy of the social network. Here are the first 6 cases that Facebook's Supervisory Board will deal with: 6. Case concerning the remarks of the former Malaysian prime minister on violence against the French <div type="image" title="Mahathir Bin Mohamad" msid="79546172" hostid="261"></div> User-submitted case 2020-001-FB-UA concerns screenshots of tweets by the former Malaysian prime minister, in which he said, among other things, that "Muslims have a right to be angry and to kill millions of French people in revenge for the massacres of the past". These tweets, since deleted from Twitter and Facebook, followed the terrorist attack that left three people dead in a church in Nice in October 2020. Following the removal of the screenshots by Facebook, the user who posted them appealed to the council, saying its aim was to spread awareness of the former prime minister's "horrible words". The user had posted the screenshots without adding a caption. 5. Case concerning the use of a photo of a deceased child to denounce the treatment of Uighurs in China <div type="image" title="Chinese flag" msid="79546183" hostid="261"></div> The 2020-002-FB-UA case concerns the publication of two well-known photos of little Aylan – a Syrian child found dead on a beach in 2015 and whose drowning images made headlines around the world. In the Burmese text that accompanied the photos on Facebook, the user denounced the treatment of the Uighur Muslim minority by the Chinese government, and compared it to the murder of Samuel Paty in France. Facebook had deleted the post, saying it was breaking its rules on hate speech. The user appealed, saying his post "disagreed with the killer and aimed to emphasize that human lives matter more than religious ideologies." 4. Case concerning a position taken on the armed conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia in Nagorno-Karabakh <div type="image" title="4" msid="79546195" hostid="261"></div> The fourth case (2020-003-FB-UA) concerns a user's position on the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan in the Nagorno-Karabakh region. The user posted photos of churches in Baku (the capital of Azerbaijan), claiming that the city was built by Armenians - mostly Christians - accusing Azerbaijanis - mostly Muslim - of "vandalism" and asking for this “what had become of the churches”. Facebook removed the post for breaking the rules on hate speech. In his appeal, the user justified himself by explaining that his intention "was to demonstrate the destruction of cultural and religious monuments." 3. Case concerning pictures of nipples as part of an awareness campaign against breast cancer <div type="image" title="3" msid="79546201" hostid="261"></div> The 2020-004-IG-UA case to be dealt with by Council concerns the social network's rules on nudity. Facebook removed a photo on Instagram - which the company owns - that showed female nipples. The Brazilian user behind the post appealed, recalling that the image was posted to raise awareness of possible signs of breast cancer, as indicated by the title and pink background (color of the campaign “Pink October” for the prevention of breast cancer). 2. Case concerning the publication of a quote from Nazi Joseph Goebbels <div type="image" title="2." msid="79546215" hostid="261"></div> The 2020-005-FB-UA case is based on a post by a Facebook user who shared an English quote attributed to Joseph Goebbels, Minister of Propaganda in Nazi Germany, “stressing the need to appeal to emotions and instinct rather than intellect and asserting that the truth is not important.” The quote had been used to criticize Donald Trump's government. Facebook removed the post because it violated the platform's rules on dangerous individuals and organizations. 1. Case concerning a publication on hydroxychloroquine as a remedy for Covid-19 <div type="image" title="1." msid="79546221" hostid="261"></div> Among the first six cases to be dealt with by the Board, this is the only one to have been submitted to the Supervisory Board by Facebook, and not by a user. The 2020-006-FB-FBR case is very current: it concerns the video and text shared by a user in a Facebook group on Covid-19, concerning hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin. The user criticizes the French authorities for not having authorized these drugs - nicknamed "Raoult's remedy" - as a treatment against Covid-19, and criticizes the government's "lack of a health strategy". Facebook said the video was viewed "about 50,000 times and shared just under 1,000 times," before being taken off the network for violence and provocation. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/sudhir-krishnaswamy-on-facebook-oversight-board-which-will-control-controversial-content-on-facebook-and-instagram/articleshow/75593282.cms">Meet the Indian on Facebook's oversight board which will police content on Facebook and Instagram</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/facebooks-much-hyped-oversight-board-that-can-overrule-even-ceo-mark-zuckerberg-likely-wont-make-any-decisions-until-after-election-day/articleshow/78818992.cms">Facebook's much-hyped oversight board that can overrule even CEO Mark Zuckerberg likely won't make any decisions until after Election Day</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/critics-challenge-facebook-with-their-own-real-oversight-board/articleshow/78473970.cms">Critics challenge Facebook with their own 'real oversight board'</a>

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Meet the Indian on Facebook's oversight board which will police content on Facebook and Instagram

Sanchita Dash

Critics challenge Facebook with their own 'real oversight board'

IANS

Facebook’s Oversight Board has over 9,000 responses in the case related to Donald Trump’s suspension from the platform⁠— a decision is coming soon

Sriram Iyer

Here are the first 6 cases on which the 'Supreme Court of Facebook' will have to rule

BI India Bureau