Meta's Oversight Board has expressed concerns over Meta's censoring of the Arabic word 'shaheed,' stating it has a discriminatory impact on expression and news reporting. Civil society organizations have long criticized Meta for disproportionate censorship of Palestinians. The word 'shaheed' translates to 'martyr' in Arabic and has been a point of contention for Meta's moderation policies. Meta's Oversight Board has ruled to lift the ban on 'shaheed' across its platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. Critics argue that Meta's moderation of 'shaheed' reflects a misunderstanding of its usage, particularly in the context of Palestine where it refers to victims of violence by the Israeli army.
Meta’s moderation of “shaheed” is based on a fundamental misunderstanding of how the word is used, said @marwasf, who directs Middle East policy at @AccessNow. “At least in the Palestine context, you refer to anyone killed by the Israeli army as ‘shaheed’” https://t.co/8zfiDaXb35
“Throughout the West, there’s a sad tendency to see Arabic speakers as only the perpetrators of political violence, never the victims. In Meta’s case, that tendency ended up being written into moderation policy and operationalized at a massive scale” https://t.co/8zfiDaXb35
Meta's oversight board has ruled to lift the ban on the word "shaheed" ("martyr" in Arabic) across its platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. https://t.co/ngMSgTPgZQ
In this week's Exporter, @russellbrandom looks at Meta’s long struggle over how to moderate “shaheed,” an Arabic word that roughly translates to “martyr” https://t.co/8zfiDaXb35
“These concerns are not new. For years, civil society organizations have called on Meta to address systems and practices that result in disproportionate censorship of Palestinians. It is deeply troubling that Meta refuses to acknowledge and address the discriminatory nature...”…
“The Board is especially concerned that Meta’s approach impacts journalism and civic discourse" Meta's Oversight Board found that the company’s censoring of the Arabic word “shaheed” has had a “discriminatory impact on expression and news reporting” https://t.co/BL9aiM0aTq