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First published online January 20, 2021

“Dangerous organizations: Facebook’s content moderation decisions and ethnic visibility in Myanmar”

Jeffrey Sablosky https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5628-7475 [email protected]View all authors and affiliations
Volume 43, Issue 6
https://doi.org/10.1177/0163443720987751

Abstract

On February 5th, 2019 Facebook labeled four Ethnic Armed Organizations (EAOs) in Myanmar as “Dangerous Organizations” thereby formally banning them from using the company’s platform. At the time of the company’s announcement, all four of these groups were in open conflict with the Myanmar military (Tatmadaw) who were themselves in the process of being prosecuted for genocide in the International Court of Justice. As a principle vector for communication in Myanmar, Facebook’s decision directly impacted the ability of these groups to connect with national and international stakeholders during their conflicts with the Tatmadaw. This study looks to examine this decision and other content moderation decisions involving ethnic speech within Myanmar to document Facebook’s evolution from a tool for democratic liberalization to international political authority. While outwardly projecting a stance of neutrality in foreign affairs, this work seeks to demarcate how Facebook’s content moderation practices have transformed the company into a new governmental apparatus freely adjudicating political speech claims around the globe with virtual impunity. Building on scholarly discussions around content moderation and digital governance in media studies, I look to interrogate how Facebook’s positionality affects ethnic visibility in nations beholden to the company for national and worldwide recognition.

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Published In

Volume 43, Issue 6
Pages: 1017 - 1042
Article first published online: January 20, 2021
Issue published: September 2021

Keywords

  1. content moderation
  2. digital governance
  3. digital media
  4. elections
  5. Facebook
  6. foreign affairs
  7. genocide
  8. Myanmar
  9. Rohingya

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Jeffrey Sablosky, New York University, 82 Washington Square E, New York, NY 10003, USA. Email: [email protected]

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