WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 23rd October, 2020) Facebook announced in a press release on Thursday that users who have been banned and have exhausted appeals can have their cases examined by an oversight board consisting of outside experts who are independent of the social media giant.
"Starting today, if your content is removed from Facebook or Instagram and you have exhausted your appeals with Facebook, you'll be able to appeal your case to the Oversight Board, a global body of experts separate from Facebook that will make independent and binding decisions on the cases they choose to hear," the release said.
The Oversight Board will decide which disputes to examine, selecting from both cases appealed by users and cases referred by Facebook, the release said.
Board members, the first 20 of whom were announced in May, have been training on Facebook's content enforcement, policies and undergoing case decision-making simulations, the release said.
Board members will also have access to a newly created "case management tool" designed to protect users privacy when selecting, reviewing and making decisions on cases, the release added.
Facebook is under fire for censoring content and in particular to censor a New York Post story based on emails reportedly from Hunter Biden that depict business in Ukraine and China involving Biden's father and current Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden.
Anger over the restrictions coming weeks before the US presidential election prompted Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee earlier on Thursday to subpoena Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg to testify.
Lawmakers also subpoenaed Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey over similar acts of censorship and restrictions on free speech.
