This archive report was first published on 7 May 2020.
On May 7, 2020, human rights activist Maina Kiai was appointed as a Board Member to the newly created Oversight Board for Facebook and Instagram Content.
As a Director of Human Rights Watch’s Global Alliances and Partnerships program, Maina Kiai brings his expertise in human rights to the Board.
The Oversight Board will review content decisions made by Facebook and Instagram, ensuring that they respect freedom of expression and human rights.
‘We have been talking for a long time about creating some kind of independent governance structure for making big companies more accountable on some of the most important decisions they make,’ said Maina Kiai.
Members of the Board will work together to tackle complex debates around content moderation, including who should decide what types of content are permitted on Facebook and Instagram.
The Board will prioritize cases that impact many users, are critical to public discourse, or raise questions about Facebook’s policies.
Decisions made by the Board will be binding and must be implemented by Facebook, unless they violate the law.
‘State regulation is important, and I think we need to make progress there too, but I think the Board is an exciting experiment and I’m excited to be part of it,’ Kiai added.
