Instagram fails to remove abusive comments aimed at female politicians
Criticism from advocacy groups emphasised the role of social media algorithms in prioritising emotionally engaging content, potentially amplifying abuse.
A recent report by the Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH) has revealed that Instagram failed to remove abusive comments directed at female politicians who may run in the 2024 US elections. The study examined over half a million comments on posts by prominent female figures from the Democratic and Republican parties, including Vice President Kamala Harris and Senator Marsha Blackburn.
Over 20,000 comments were flagged as ‘toxic,’ with a significant number containing sexist, racist abuse and even death and rape threats. Despite violating Instagram’s community standards, 93% of the harmful comments remained on the platform.
Meta, the parent company of Instagram, highlighted the tools available to users to filter out offensive content but acknowledged the need to review the CCDH report and promised to act on any content that breaches their policies. The report further emphasised that women of colour were particularly vulnerable to online abuse during the 2020 election and criticised social media algorithms for amplifying harmful content. Advocacy groups are increasingly calling on social media platforms to better enforce their safety guidelines to protect users from targeted abuse.
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