[governance] Facebook profiles blocked and content removed in Brazil

[Roland Perry]

In message 
<CAJwbTiALJVio67rYhihzX+nsFD9F5-y1EYNW6G7Ug-bBRwWgnw at mail.gmail.com>, at 
09:31:42 on Thu, 31 May 2012, Salanieta T. Tamanikaiwaimaro 
<salanieta.tamanikaiwaimaro at gmail.com> writes
>Facebook probably took this approach because its social network 
>transcends multiple jurisdictions that have strict laws on "obscene 
>publications". The recent petition filed by Vinay Rai in the New Delhi 
>courts against Facebook and others. My personal take on it was that it 
>was a commercial decision for "Facebook" and that it was far cheaper to 
>take down offensive content if it were to put it in a position of being sued

Exactly - the same sort of commercial decision which would mean a lack 
of xxx movies being shown on an international flight.

Removing the profiles is probably a knee-jerk too far though, freedom of 
expression should allow the participants to discuss their protest 
movement, even if commercial rules mean they can't display the pictures 
on Facebook.

But we are often told how the Internet "routes round damage" in cases 
like this, and there are numerous photo-sites (let alone a person's own 
webspace supplied by their ISP) where these photos could be loaded, and 
referred to from a discussion hosted on Facebook.

The Internet is not "just the Web", and the Web is not just Facebook. 
Stories like this which give the impression that Facebook has an 
unassailable monopoly simply feeds their marketing strategy.
-- 
Roland Perry

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