Bullying? Terrorist Groups? Facebook Clarifies What Is and Isn’t Allowed

The world’s largest online social network explains its thinking on what posts, images, and other content it allows on its site and why.
Bullying? Terrorist Groups? Facebook Clarifies What Is and Isn’t Allowed
AP Photo/Jeff Chiu
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NEW YORK—Facebook is trying to clarify what posts, images and other content it allows on its site and why.

In an update to its community standards page, the world’s largest online social network gave users more guidance on why, for example, it might take down a post that featured sexual violence and exploitation, hate speech, criminal activity or bullying.

It also explained why it not only bans terrorist and organized crime groups, but it also removes content supporting them.

The Menlo Park, California-based company said it isn’t changing how it regulates the content of posts, and that while some of the guidance for users is new, “it is consistent with how we’ve applied our standards in the past.”

In a blog post on March 16, Facebook said it is a challenge to maintain one set of standards that meet the needs of its entire community. More than 80 percent of Facebook users are outside the U.S. and Canada.

Facebook restricts content in countries where it violates local laws, even if that content does not violate its community standards.