Have thoughts on whether Facebook’s newly established high court should lift the company’s ban on former President Donald Trump? Well, now you can voice them.
On Friday, the social network’s Oversight Board began accepting public comments on Trump's "indefinite suspension" from the platform, which it has the power to overturn.
Facebook decided to create the independent panel—which is made up of legal, tech, and human rights experts—to help it address the thorniest content moderation decisions from an objective point of view. Any ruling the board makes is also binding, meaning the company will have to enforce it.
To decide the Trump ban, the board plans on reviewing the case like a judge would. Facebook will have a chance to argue why the ban should remain in place. Meanwhile, Trump’s team can choose to submit a comment, arguing why his account’s access should be restored.
At the same time, the board wants the public to weigh in, citing the need for “diverse perspectives,” including “subject matter experts and interested groups.”
“This input will allow Board Members to tap into more knowledge, expertise, and context as cases will cover a variety of issues and geographies,” it said.
Indeed, Facebook’s decision to ban Trump is also raising questions about how the social network should moderate content from elected world officials. As a result, the board plans on coming up with recommendations when it comes to suspending a Facebook account belonging to a political leader.
To decide the case, the board will look at whether Trump’s post on Facebook concerning the mob violence on the US Capitol on Jan. 6 broke the social network’s rules and merited a suspension. “They will also consider whether Facebook’s removal of the content respected international human rights standards, including on freedom of expression and other human rights,” the board added.
But already, the board has spotted some issues with how Facebook enforced the ban on Trump’s account, saying the company has yet to fully clarify “the nature of the restrictions." It's puzzling, for example, why Trump's posts remain public on Facebook and Instagram, without any note of the recent enforcement actions Facebook has taken, the board noted.
However, the social network has said the restrictions were necessary, citing the threat of real-world violence. “Our decision to suspend then-President Trump’s access was taken in extraordinary circumstances: a US president actively fomenting a violent insurrection designed to thwart the peaceful transition of power; five people killed; legislators fleeing the seat of democracy,” the company said last week. "This has never happened before—and we hope it will never happen again."
The deadline to file public comments on the case is Friday, Feb. 8 at 10 a.m. EST. The board plans on reaching a decision on the matter within the next 90 days. A sign-off by a majority of the 20-member board is also needed for a case to be decided.