Liam Walsh
Liam is a Co-Director at Intelligency and heads up the agency's Digital Intelligence & Paid Social activity. Over the last decade, he has worked with brands from the world of sports such as Premier League clubs to entertainment such as Channel 4 and Disney.
Instagram users recently reported seeing a surge of graphic and violent content appearing in their Reels feed, despite having set their privacy settings to filter such material. Meta has since addressed the issue, apologising and implementing a fix to prevent similar problems in the future.
Meta Apologizes for Content Moderation Error
Meta has apologised after Instagram users reported a surge of violent and graphic content appearing in their Reels feed. The company acknowledged the issue, explaining that a recent error caused inappropriate content to be recommended to users, even when they had set their “Sensitive Content Control” to its highest setting. Meta has since fixed the problem and promised to enhance its content moderation efforts.
Graphic Content Despite Privacy Settings
Privacy and content moderation are critical to Meta’s approach, as the company aims to protect users from harmful material while allowing freedom of expression. Meta’s guidelines focus on removing graphic content, particularly videos showing harm to people or animals. However, some sensitive content is still allowed if it raises awareness about significant issues like human rights violations or conflicts, with appropriate warnings for viewers. Ensuring privacy helps users feel safe while using the platform, minimizing exposure to distressing material.
Meta’s New Content Moderation Approach
This incident follows recent changes to Meta’s content moderation policies. The company has announced a shift towards focusing more on high-severity violations, such as terrorism or child exploitation while leaving less severe content up to user reports. Meta’s new approach aims to reduce over-moderation and give users more control over what they see. CEO Mark Zuckerberg also introduced plans to allow more political content and change the third-party fact-checking system to a new model called “Community Notes.” These changes are part of an effort to promote free expression while still keeping harmful content off the platform.
