Instagram hides some posts that mention abortion
Instagram is blocking posts that mention abortion from public view, in some cases requiring users to confirm their age before letting them view posts offering information about the procedure
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Your support makes all the difference.Instagram is blocking posts that mention abortion from public view, in some cases requiring its users to confirm their age before letting them view posts that offer up information about the procedure.
Over the last day, several abortion advocacy Instagram pages have found their posts or stories hidden with a warning that described the posts as “sensitive content.”
In one example, Instagram covered a post on one page with more than 25,000 followers that shared text reading: “Abortion in America How You Can Help.” The post went on to encourage followers to donate money to abortion organizations and to protest protest the Supreme Court’s decision to strip constitutional protections for abortion in the U.S.
The post was slapped with a warning from Instagram that covered the post, reading “This photo may contain graphic or violent content.”
The Associated Pres identified nearly a dozen other posts that mentioned the word “abortion” and were subsequently covered up by Instagram. All of the posts were informational in nature, and none of the posts featured photos of abortions. An Instagram post by an AP reporter that asked people if they were experiencing the problem was also covered by the company on Tuesday, and required users to enter their age in order to view it.
The AP inquired about the problem on Tuesday morning. Hours later, Instagram’s communication department acknowledged the problem on Twitter, describing it as a glitch.
“We’re hearing that people around the world are seeing our ‘sensitivity screens,’ on many different types of content when they shouldn’t be. We’re looking into this bug and working on a fix now," the company tweeted.
Instagram-owner Meta did not answer questions about its policies around abortion content.
Instagram's latest issue follows a Monday AP report that Facebook and Instagram were promptly deleting posts that offered to mail out abortion pills in states that restrict their use. The tech platforms said they were deleting the posts because they violated policies against selling or gifting certain products, including pharmaceuticals, drugs and firearms.
The AP’s review found that similar posts offering to mail a gun or marijuana were not removed by Facebook. The company did not comment on the discrepancy.