Facebook has said its independent oversight board will hear users’ appeals on the content they want to be removed from the company’s platforms. In addition to their own content, users can now appeal before the oversight panel regarding someone else’s content that they want to be taken down.

"Today we shared an update that we've expanded the @OversightBoard’s scope. In addition to your own content taken down, you can now appeal over someone else’s content that was left up on FB or IG to the board," announced Guy Rosen, Facebook’s vice president of integrity, in a Twitter thread.

Facebook’s official blog read, "Starting today, people who use Facebook and Instagram now have the ability to appeal other people’s content that has been left up to the Oversight Board. Since October 2020, if content was removed from Facebook or Instagram and a user disagreed with Facebook’s re-reviewed decision to keep it down, that content was eligible for final appeal to the Oversight Board. Today’s announcement represents an expansion of the board’s initial scope."

The recent move has expanded the authority of Facebook's independent panel which was earlier tasked with reviewing instances of whether content was improperly taken down from Facebook or Instagram. Facebook will work to expand the board’s scope over time, Rosen.

Over the coming weeks, all users will be able to appeal content moderators’ decisions to keep flagged content such as posts, comments, photos and videos on Facebook and Instagram. The board decisions will be binding.

According to reports, members of the oversight board have called Facebook on a previous occasion to expand their authority to influence a wider range of tough content decisions that social-media platforms encounter.

How to report content that’s been left up

If someone thinks that a piece of content should not be on Facebook or Instagram, they first need to report the content to the social media giant. If Facebook decides to keep the content up even after review, the reporting person will receive an Oversight Board Reference ID in their support inbox and from there can appeal the decision to the oversight board.

(Edited by : Jomy)