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Women's health creators and businesses report content suppression on social media
Overview
Women's health creators, charities, and businesses have reported that social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok are unfairly restricting, removing, or shadowbanning their content. Organisations such as the Eve Appeal and Hertility have had educational and medical posts flagged or placed behind sensitivity filters due to automated moderation algorithms misdetecting terms related to pregnancy, anatomy, and reproductive health.
Key points
- Irene Breen, founder of pregnancy pillow company Bella Moon, stated that Meta forced her to remove the word "pregnancy" from her website and URLs after her ads were penalised.
- A report by campaign group CensHERship found that 96% of nearly 200 surveyed creators, brands, and charities experienced content restrictions.
- The Eve Appeal reported that an educational post regarding vulval anatomy and cancer was pulled and later placed behind a sensitivity filter.
- Fertility company Hertility had a video about a woman's experience with endometriosis removed and incorrectly classified as political content by Meta.
- Due to algorithmic moderation issues, 65% of respondents in the CensHERship survey reported resorting to self-censorship, such as using euphemisms or asterisks.
- Meta stated that while wellness and reproductive products are allowed, restrictions exist to prevent negative user experiences across cultures, and that it is consulting with health organisations.