[Air-L] studies on the limits of "free" speech on FB?

[Michael T Zimmer]

Hi Charles - 

My Occam's razor reaction to this is that your text triggered some kind of automated comment screening algorithm designed to prevent spam or other unapproved content. I suspect it wasn't that your comment was about Ferguson or Anonymous per se, but that it included text deemed spammy or hazardous (perhaps mention of doxing?). A classic false positive.

-- 
Michael Zimmer, PhD
Associate Professor, School of Information Studies
Director, Center for Information Policy Research
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
e: zimmerm at uwm.edu
w: www.michaelzimmer.org

On Aug 18, 2014, at 12:44 AM, Charles Ess <charles.ess at gmail.com> wrote:

> Hi all,
> 
> Apologies for a slightly irritated posting/inquiry - but I've discovered
> that FB recently removed a comment from my timeline that I made regarding
> events in Ferguson, Missouri, and Anonymous, which not only "doxed" the
> alleged shooter, but also cut off Internet services within the local
> police department.  (Going on memory here, sorry if all the details are
> not exact or complete.)
> 
> My comment was something along the lines of:
> The is the second time I've seen Anonymous out the wrong person (and I'm
> not even keeping track very closely).  As unhappy as I am with corrupt and
> over-militarized cops, etc. [really: my wife grew up some 15 minutes' walk
> from where the shooting took place] - I'm even less happy with a hacker
> underground that is neither transparent nor accountable to those of us it
> claims to "protect and serve" (irony intentional).
> 
> I'm assuming it was FB that took this down, for whatever reason (i.e., not
> someone from Anonymous or elsewhere)?
> 
> In any event: does anyone know of good studies - qualitative /
> quantitative - that attempt to document this sort of behavior on FB's
> part?  It would be invaluable both for its own sake, as well as for my
> upcoming class on Internet regulation as caught between several poles,
> including freedom of expression as critical to democratic discourse, etc.
> 
> Many thanks in advance,
> 
> - charles ess
> 
> 
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