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Demoted, Deleted, and Denied: There’s More Than Just Shadowbanning on Instagram | An investigation by The Markup found that the platform demoted images of the Israel–Hamas war, deleted captions without warning, and denied users the option to appeal

An investigation by The Markup found that the platform demoted images of the Israel–Hamas war, deleted captions without warning, and denied users the option to appeal

For the last seven years, Nabeel Shah has used Instagram as a place to share photos and videos about his life—Valentine’s Day gift ideas, images of his family cooking—and to support his wife, Maryam Ishtiaq, and the small business they co-founded selling halal bone broth. On its Instagram and Facebook accounts, local education news, job listings, and notices for lost sheep are interspersed with photos of missing journalists and appeals for blood donations. For example, on a post to Israel’s state Instagram account, one user commented, “If I wasn’t so saddened and horrified at the atrocities you are committing, I would just sit here all day on your profile and laugh my butt off!”

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