Facebook Will Challenge Thai Government Order To Block A Popular Group Criticising Its King

TOPLINE

Facebook is set to challenge a Thai government legal order that forced the company to block access to a group with more than 1 million members for being critical of the country’s king, an action that highlights the increasing pressure that Facebook and other U.S. tech companies face regarding content takedowns and censorship around the world.

KEY FACTS

Tangent

In India, which is Facebook’s largest market in terms of audience size, the social media company has been embroiled in a scandal after the Wall Street Journal reported last week that Facebook India’s public policy team, headed by Ankhi Das, refused to take down hateful posts made by members of India’s ruling party, the BJP. The report also found that Das had herself shared a post which referred to India’s Muslims as a “degenerate community.” Following the report, opposition parties have called for a joint parliamentary committee to probe the allegations against Facebook.

Key Background

While Facebook has actively taken down political content in some countries, it has expressed a strong unwillingness to moderate political speech in the U.S., including misinformation and hateful content. Facebook’s inaction over a post by President Trump in May, where he said “when the looting starts, the shooting starts” in reference to the Black Lives Matter protests, led to vocal public criticism of the company’s leadership by its employees. CEO Mark Zuckerberg however, stated that he believed “the best way to hold politicians accountable is through voting, and I believe we should trust voters to make judgments for themselves.”

Further Reading

Facebook to challenge govt demand to block monarchy discussion group (Bangkok Post)

Facebook blocks group critical of Thai monarchy amid government pressure (Reuters)