Does Meta censor pro-Palestinian content? | Al Jazeera World Documentary

An Al Jazeera social media experiment tests whether some platforms discriminate against pro-Palestinian, Arabic content.
Al Jazeera investigates how social media moderation and censorship policies work and whether the treatment of pro-Palestinian content in Arabic is fair and impartial. Before the Israeli war on Gaza that began in October 2023, Al Jazeera investigated the disparity between Meta’s moderation of Israeli versus Palestinian posts. They set up two Facebook pages, one in Arabic and another in Hebrew, both posting the same stories with the same pictures, but each following their own narratives. The film sees the moderators in action - and offers a range of insights into what some people now see as an increasingly closed cyberspace.
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[@aljazeeraenglish]

Thanks for tuning in. Share your thoughts with us in the comments below. If you would like to watch more documentaries from Al Jazeera World, find them here: kzbin.info/aero/PLzGHKb8i9vTzaW8FXpQuLYHQOkP2wjXv0&si=XNC9rj9fN3btNb0U Connect with Al Jazeera World: ‣ Twitter: twitter.com/AlJazeeraWorld ‣ Facebook: facebook.com/AlJazeeraWorld ‣ Instagram: instagram.com/_aljazeeraworld ‣ KZbin: aje.me/AJWplaylist

[@VolReed]

Al Jazeera: state-funded propaganda from the slave owners of Qatar. Fact✅

[@lukemurray4950]

All social media companies censor content that doesn't fit the narratuve and thats why you have to be against all censorship or don't complain when you are censored.

[@davidboi4025]

Your a joke aljazeera.....we are the world and you have no power....

[@ruthbarrett4527]

I prefer Al Jazeera to mainstream Western media, it's all BS.

[@OsmanIbrahiim-rk7qv]

Good job aljazeera❤❤❤❤❤❤💯👌😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍❤❤❤❤❤

[@shawndorv8953]

youtube does the same thing, my most critical comments dissappear immediatelly.

[@YTsupportsZionaziGenocide]

KZbin supports the genocide, its clear as day

[@aprendoespanol6833]

mine too

[@soulstar2401]

Mine too...

[@sutapasbhattacharya9471]

Same here.

[@sutapasbhattacharya9471]

In the past I could post long detailed comments - but now, only a few very short ones survive the censorship.

[@hanimazen5717]

Al Jazeera thank you for everything

[@aljazeeraenglish]

Thank you for watching the film.

[@mariamabeid]

Yes they do...my account is usually very active...but everytime I post videos of Apartheid isreal atrocities in Palestine, non of my friends are able to see the post

[@Azrah_Ahmed]

Same here

[@zander-lb1jy]

Same here

[@ahmeddeedatjalloh4892]

That's what happened to me too

[@oliveoil5789]

I’ve been sharing because here in the US what Israel is doing has been suppressed by the media or biased for Israel. I don’t know if anyone is seeing my posts or not, but I do know that there has not been one comment or like/love/mad or dislike on any post I’ve made.

[@ahmeddeedatjalloh4892]

@@oliveoil5789 it's because your post has been censored

[@Ramijay90]

They do, I can watch my comments get deleted in real time, especially when you expose the lies and speak the truth. Your comment gets instantly deleted.

[@Ramijay90]

My comment got deleted again lol. The Israeli propaganda machine is working overtime.

[@Ramijay90]

@yt-uo8gc my comment got deleted again

[@HypatiaMuse]

Same here- call out Israel for being an apartheid state on certain channels & the comment dissappears.

[@Ramijay90]

My comment keeps disappearing on this channel now

[@Ramijay90]

Six of my replies have been deleted

[@seriouslydon_t]

Meta is incredibly racist. I have an instagram account where I post drawings and systematically, the posts where I put a drawing of a black or arabic person on the cover get ignored. At first I wondered if the people following me were racist, but when I asked some friends they told me, flabbergasted, that these posts never appeared on their timelines. We did several tests and can confirme that the very algorythm of the website is racist... I know it's not the exact subject matter of the video, but all of that to say that yeah, I'm not surprised by their censorship, sadly...

[@akeleven]

We need this evidence brought to light

[@irenedemarco1354]

Isnt insta owned by meta? I think you will find, you have to check who owns, or is associated with the platform.... Because the same censorship will apply to the socials that are connected...and interconnected...

[@nwankwosampson-xk3jc]

Go and create your own app😂

[@Theivihan]

We have to create a site or channel where people have the right to expose their meanings

[@o.z.p.]

You sadly hit the nail on the head, racist to the core.

[@metatrongroove2824]

Lol. How about about all the random pro-Israel ads that just randomly popped up after Oct 7? If these are a low-key honey pot, call me Winnie the Pooh.

[@ChefAnatoly]

Those commercials make it seem like the Israelis are being mistreated, while 30,000 Palestinian Civilians, mostly women and children were murdered off. 70,000 more maimed and severly injured.

[@demoncloud6147]

Winnie the Pooh 😅🤣 isnt that Jing Ping

[@lindarose7475]

Amazon suddenly offers you books about the holocaust if you look up at Palestinian books. Strange!

[@svansy]

or how the algorithm always leads to pro-zionist propaganda

[@lezbyanke777]

Google play store has apparently labeled the Palestinian flag as "hate" symbol. Justice for Palestine! 🇵🇸❤️✡️

[@ChefAnatoly]

It's good to see factual content coming from Al Jazeera. All the way from Chicago, we support your Journalism!

[@JaaKamSaa_1012]

Yes, they do! Meta did all that just because we're speaking out the truth that needs to be told to the world of what really happening in Gaza. This is a violation of the user rights which they specifically underline in the policy and action will be taken against them...! Good that these issues are being looked into!

[@educationinnovation2454]

Thread is filled with anti Israel lies…

[@caropeter7077]

You win, An other victime fallen to the Islamo communiste brainwashing machine wich is Al Jazeera Katar & Iranian propaganda

[@user-zz9di9hq1u]

Yes they do! Racist comments I have reported don’t get removed but when I took screen shot and exposed the person meta than removed it. It’s a shame that haters are running such plate forms.

[@user-bd7dn6yt8b]

It is their platforms. Let's get our own. ❤

[@ResilientVerses]

THEY DOO!!!! i have deleted all my social media account!!! and i will never return. WE NEED SOCIAL MEDIA WHERE WE CAN VOICE OUR VOICES!!

[@riceburner6739]

oh no, the multibillion dollar company is devastated of losing you - a single account irrelevant user

[@PaulWindsor978]

😂😂 meta.. google oh btw owns KZbin are ISRAEL biggest supporters durr

[@PaulWindsor978]

​@@riceburner6739😂 true

[@wamnicho]

@@PaulWindsor978 duh, the owners of both companies are Jewish in case you didn’t know

[@khadar.shiine]

that is way i move x and rumble

[@chessman70]

All these comments regarding what happens on KZbin as well should be a wake up call to everybody. There is censorship across the board.

[@mamunpatwry2825]

Thanks you Alzjazeera❤

[@PaulinAsia_]

Yes they do. I am now unable to see any of my posts, after sharing KZbin videos criticizing Israel's war crimes

[@junbaosu8031]

youtube does the same thing, my most critical comments disappear immediately.

[@PaulWindsor978]

Oh no 😮

[@keksi6844]

ONLY time I ever got ban on Tube is when I spoke against Israel.

[@AmmarYaqoub1020]

My post on facebook got deleted twice by meta! Its disgusting

[@kwaldeck6491]

It would be nice to see one story about yemen on Aljazeera 377 thousand dead so far. Millions are starving. 50 thousand children have starved to death Where is your empathy and compassion

[@fazilalivs]

Dont Worry. It will start again once Donald Rump is back on seat

[@T_Rex_786]

@@fazilalivs so all this happening is a Inside job by muslim umma?, I suspected that before.

[@educationinnovation2454]

@@fazilalivsDonald trump will ensure that all emphasises move to Jerusalem 😊

[@caropeter7077]

Yes and what about Nigeria, massacres of undreds of Christians and undred more taken hostages by the radical Muslims, no space for them in your headlines ?

[@jeanettelowe6672]

Most certainly! I've been thrown in FB jail several times for bringing the plight of the Palestinian people to light as it did not start in a vacuum on 7th October. So many people sympathizing with Israhell plays the victim. Too many don't do their homework studying history and facts, refuse or just don't grasp the brutal fact that the once oppressed has become the oppressor.

[@CW-xf1li]

We see similar things here on YT. Free speech is 1sided 😒

[@OH-uo3nq]

Free Palestine

[@rakandinho1051]

Aljazeera, you're the only news channel that has my respect. Your journalism is the best in the world. Thank you

[@nwankwosampson-xk3jc]

😂

[@rakandinho1051]

@@nwankwosampson-xk3jc You spelt your name wrong

[@aljazeeraenglish]

Thanks for your positive feedback! We appreciate it.

[@bestvideoforcats]

I heard this doc this morning. Very good work.

[@shivashambo007]

Facebook has very recently blocked the posting of KZbin videos directly to 'stories'.

[@MonirKhan-po5mu]

I love Aljazeera’s news coverage, however not having someone speak over the Arabic subtitle is a big missed opportunity to reach more audiences. A lot of people don’t have the time to read subtitles, but can listen to it like a audiobook in the background whilst doing something else.

[@lindarose7475]

Totally agree, it needs voice overs

[@demoncloud6147]

This is why the Chinese use their own apps and platforms

[@djmikesea]

Every Time i've posted the link to the documentary the lobby its been almost immediately removed. have hundreds of screenshots showing this.

[@philippa5400]

I have many screenshots of y○^ t^b censoring Ukr@in£ historical facts. I wonder if it's because the EU fined G○○gl€ me than 8 billion in three different antitrust cases

[@chessman70]

KZbin does it too in the comments.

[@drnnizamani2389]

You tube deleted account of Zeeshanul Hassan Usmani, with millions subscriber. For no apparent reason.

[@binxwinx8434]

I didn't bother appealing my FB ban .. what's the point, the posts they removed did not warrant being removed, it was just before the ICJ court case and during that time there were MANY of us that got blanket banned. They are biased, and when they remove a post you don't have access to ask them why, they decide and they ban you.

[@kingofallplants3775]

I'm glad they banned me. Now I use x and I can speak much more freely. It's not perfect by any means but it's 100 times better

[@binxwinx8434]

@@kingofallplants3775 ditto X is way better

[@lukemurray4950]

All social media companies censor content that doesn't fit the narratuve and thats why you have to be against all censorship or don't complain when you are censored.

[@monarch8815]

Shaun King got a firsthand taste

[@user-oq9li9xy7e]

I deleted my Facebook account a year ago. They spreading what they want.

[@samuelallen8945]

lets call it what it is - Islamaphobia/Brownafobia. That is what it always has been since the 90s/post-911 world

[@educationinnovation2454]

Try to criticise Islam and prophet, you will see what is censorship

[@o.z.p.]

The owners of these platforms are all Jewish.

[@o.z.p.]

A race ist.

[@HHM220]

@@educationinnovation2454 There are people who criticize Islam in a very mean way and they don’t get cancelled. So, stop lying about that.

[@S.E.O.S]

Free Palestine 🇵🇸

[@EtrovoKango]

No one can stop God !

[@Azrah_Ahmed]

Yes they do

[@DrRaadM]

That parallel investigation with the two pages was brilliant. Thank you AJ!

[@aljazeeraenglish]

Thanks for watching, dear Raad. We appreciate your positive feedback.

[@elqord.1118]

Ugh yes, it does

[@sierrataft2226]

Meta even suspended Motaz Azaiza’s fb account recently. He has over 18 million followers on Instagram. This man is influential photographer exposing the horrors caused by Israel and for that Meta has suspended his account. They obviously want to silence him because he is doing such a good job in his mission

[@The-Man-Right-Chea]

😮😮😮😮😮😮😮😮❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤Short answer, YES they do. My comments are deleted or shadow banned 🇵🇸

[@HenryTownsmyth]

Great video and exposes what we already know but with great evidence. I wish the non English speakers were dubbed as I was listening to this on my phone. It's not possible to read subtitles.

[@er.junaid2016]

Yeah Of course when I comment on isreali channels, within 2 minutes it gets removed. I am pissed off... #free_palestine

[@bonduie4414]

great production, I'm so greatful for the quality of AJ work.

[@americo7965]

They absolutely do. KZbin as well

[@YTsupportsZionaziGenocide]

KZbin sure does, that's for sure.

[@YTsupportsZionaziGenocide]

KZbin has deleted 100s of my posts alone... clearly youtube supports the genocide and the destruction of the palestinian people, culture and country.... a bunch of fascists

[@margotkiser]

Suspending social media accounts isn’t censorship it’s collective punishment

[@arthurchu4491]

Google: Don't be evil！Because that's my privilege!

[@nomadiclapse]

If you use meta you are part of the problem...

[@spiritofthetallhills2037]

And and no. Its a gray zone cause while it would be nice to just abandon these garbage platforms conpletely, the truth of the matter is there are many neutral people who just use these platforns for regular social media nonsense who otherwise just be exposed to rampant unchallenged hasbara if pro palestinian people were to just abandon it completely

[@spiritofthetallhills2037]

But i do agree meta is very racist and double standard prone in its moderation

[@nomadiclapse]

@@spiritofthetallhills2037 Racist? There is only one race. The human race. Stop promoting divisive nonsense.

[@lenini056]

​@nomadiclapse go tell the far right bigots that!

[@nomadiclapse]

@@lenini056 respond cogently or be quiet.

[@lezbyanke777]

I posted a post on meta about isnotreal coercing LGBT Palestinians into becoming informants, and my post was rapported as "spam". I've basically given up on posting political and other stuff on mainstream social media platforms. Now I only use social media to stay in touch with friends and relatives

[@DigitalicaEG]

“isnotreal” that’s clever, I’m going to use that. I used to do jizzrael but recently it’s getting banned

[@az-rule84]

​@@DigitalicaEGhow about 'izr4 h3ll'

[@rainyfoxmedia]

Excellent presentation and evidence, All the social media platforms have bias, some worse than others, But what has surprised me the most is how blatant it is when the content posted does not meet the Western Eurocentric Ideology...

[@simpleartofhealing286]

Very interesting food for thought. Great journalism as usual. Thank you!

[@aljazeeraenglish]

Thanks for your positive feedback!

[@hamzaakbar5287]

It happens in KZbin as well, my comments disappears affer few minutes whenever i talk about Palestine.

[@tinkerandbelltrading8681]

Alja zeera is the best if not for Al-Jazeera we will miss alot of information thank god for the brave alja zeera reporters who sacrifice themselves to fight back

[@1961Bullet]

Every time they reply with absolute indignation and denial, it’s a confession.

[@JohnDoe-dn9ez]

Thank you for all your work. This is what journalism should be

[@firdosRS]

Yes meta blocks my Likes and comments on pic and clips

[@aboucard93]

This is why they want to ban tik tok but not temu which is also on by the Chinese.

[@TruthAlways_]

Do people still use facebook? Have not been on it since 2018

[@careforjusticealways]

deleted my account last year! Facebook is a loosing game

[@chessman70]

This is why they are going after Tik-Tok. Obviously on the main three, Facebook, Google (KZbin), and X (Twitter) they can control the narrative on Tik-Tok they can't.

[@babslan3341]

Yes, absolutely! People getting blocked, their postings disappear and they even getting treated by facebook! I am one of the people writing about Gaza, i know what myself and friends go trough. Many people are even scared to share the postings about Gaza❗

[@babslan3341]

I am now making screenshots of my being blocked postings, Even a photo of a crying child in Gaza was removed, against "community standards".... 👽

[@ssns722]

Thanks for your reporting. 🙏🙏🙏

[@BobTheBob647]

I’m in Canada and we don’t get news on Facebook.

[@osegokehiloe6691]

I'm taking down my Facebook account after this.

[@Onequietvoice]

About 50% of my youtube responses are deleted. I take care to use moderate languaage.

[@philippa5400]

The more informed and strictly factual mine are, the more they get deleted

[@Onequietvoice]

@@philippa5400 Not surprised. The only other topic which comes close is when I comment on the effects of climate change. It is pretty clear that deletion is dependant on the topic more than the specific comment.

[@philippa5400]

@@OnequietvoiceGee... That will take some thinking, what would be the point of that. Sounds insane

[@Onequietvoice]

@@philippa5400What they have in common is that very wealthy organisations and governments have a vested interest in limiting/controlling debate and have the means to do so.

[@zebakhawaja]

Yes, Instagram is muting 🔇

[@randicook15]

How can they do this to across the world though? That sounds like Israel makes the rules up for the entire internet...

[@MinkytheMinkY]

I wrote "I can get behind the message, and yes, release all the hostages but let's take it further: permanent ceasefire, end the occupation, and honor the right to return". Now tell me, what of that are key words to have my comment taken down? It was flagged for spam but i said nothing that ig would consider spam under their guidelines. I said nothing of a product, or like for like, or anything of the sort. Guess IG doesn't like how popular the anti-genocide stance is.

[@standforjustice8799]

The whole idea of experimenting with different accounts really deserves a salute. I believe this documentary should be a role model for other news agencies who seek to publish stories on hot issues.

[@dasskodly]

LinkedIn does the same also, I have an active public account and my posts about the ongoing genocide are being often minimized sometimes striked

[@PaulKRedd]

C'mon, do an english voiceover translation. This is youtube, half of us are just listiening .

[@AdnanMasr]

YES and KZbin as well. It is truly biased.

[@pattit6530]

According to a November 17 report by Forbes, the Isn'traeli state prosecutor’s office has sent around 9,500 requests since October 7 to Meta to remove content relating to Isn'traeli actions in Gaza

[@user-pz7xx2sz4r]

Great job with philistine report Al jezira tv

[@aljazeeraenglish]

Thanks for watching!

[@akram.ibrahim]

Great video

[@hanimazen5717]

thx

[@yaelz6043]

Obviously.

[@macarosee3735]

I found that Instagram have been very tricky to use too. it's very much disappointing and eye opening for sure.

[@MyLinda1983]

we have to talk in codigos so our message doesn't be eliminated and Iam just repeting what israel said or do.

[@SydneyTravellersGuide]

yes

[@Ellabella2889]

We are finally understanding the prejudice around the Palestinians.

[@arshadrizvi7241]

Absolutely

[@deligneeric6804]

i am using a vpn to connect to tel aviv and make my researsh, i know for sure that i have censorship using google.

[@kingofallplants3775]

How did that end up, did you get better results

[@Societiestoday]

This is quite an interesting documentary

[@aljazeeraenglish]

Thanks for watching!

[@sholeha6894]

Indeed. My Facebook post hardly reach to 20 people now.

[@Reader481]

Great documentary. It underscores the need for Arab governments and societies to stop serving the interests of the west and become independent.

[@aljazeeraenglish]

We are glad you loved it. We appreciate your positive feedback!

[@mellym3523]

This morning I was banned on Instagram. Accused of spam, stated no restrictions. Then all of a sudden all posts, stories, chats, liking etc were removed. I have not written anything abusive but taking on the point of the port being made. Speaking truths. Then accused of 'spam'. It's utterly disgusting

[@kathyd1970]

It's like an abusive relationship. Existing in the world is like living with an overbearing, jealous, and violent parent or partner. Everything is okay as long as you deal with it quietly, always having to pretend that you enjoy it, but the second you step out of line ....

[@malungisamaseko3155]

Al Jazeera has to live on. Its credible

[@aljazeeraenglish]

Thanks for your positive feedback!

[@user-ed1th7qx1s]

The use of parallel pages and their different treatment by the Racistgorithm is the best way to do this. A permanent dashboard of this should be monitored by human rights groups. Entrap them then sue them. You cant hide an algorithm !

[@HumanBeingsRThinkingBeings]

Mind Begs the Question: - Corporates who support,aid - A Govt/Nation engaging in - Starvation,Death Camps,Gassing/White Phosphorus,Ethnic Cleansing,etc - Democratic or Nazi?

[@ismaelsamandu7078]

Owomo went to the same school that Kirby went to learn to make statements 😂

[@Uliengue]

Duterte and the Marcos family resurgence to power has a lot of thanks from Facebook directly that engaged with them on media usage and training

[@LeeJames2024IS]

Or maybe the media lost people's trust and credibility (abs-cbn) people actually wanna see what's happening instead of filtering information to fit their narratives✌️

[@ahmeda3050]

100% same with youtube, all the pro palestinian stuff started vanishing from my feed! And on FB, I am getting israeli spam when i NEVER look up israeli crap, dozens upon dozens of pro israeli pages, like spam

[@BaibaZiga]

They absolutely do! When I started increasingly sharing pro-Palestinian content since Oct 7th Instagram “locked” my account for a week. I could scroll but not comment or create posts. Since, the shadow ban has been real with single digits of engagement.

[@aimsophie]

I can say from experience absolutely yes

[@eleanorrae7378]

Even the names and photographs of doctors who have given their lives in the last few months, no other words have been shadow banned on my account.

[@CFX992]

Is water wet?