Facebook called on to ban gruesome images

Facebook is considering how to deal with gruesome photos and videos that users share on the social network, in the wake of videos showing the murder of journalist James Foley and other images from Middle East conflicts being posted online. While Twitter and YouTube immediately banned the video of Foley’s death, Facebook was heavily criticised by the media for allowing images of beheadings and other violence to stay on the site. A Facebook spokesperson told the BBC that such images more often condemn violence than celebrate it.

Social networks are being asked to police their users, and that raises many questions about how they should go about protecting us. Critics have suggested that Facebook should automatically block such images and only let users see them if they click through and prove their age, but digital activists have warned against making Facebook “some kind of private police”. Others have suggested that the site should simply respond more quickly when people use its ‘Report this post‘ option and remove posts if enough users flag them as offensive.

Facebook hasn’t said one way or another how it plans to address the problem. Keep an eye on your news feed, because the site often tests ideas on small groups of users to see how well they work, before it rolls
them out to everyone.

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We think this is a tough line for social networks to walk: if they block such images, they’ll be accused of censorship; if they take no action, they’ll be accused of doing nothing to protect users and letting terrorists spread propaganda. Sadly, there’s no perfect solution. The idea of flagging content could be abused, and some images will surely slip through the barriers. However, if Facebook is left to police its own users, it will invariably err on the site of caution and remove more than is necessary. It should address the problem now, rather than wait for the next media storm, because this is a decision that requires careful consideration.