Andrew Selepak, University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications Media Production, Management, and Technology lecturer and coordinator of the online master’s program with a specialization in social media, is quoted in “How Social Media Handles Censorship and Graphic Content” posted on winknews.com on March 31.

The story focuses on a social media video showing a 14-year-old falling to his death from an Orlando ride. Despite the graphic nature, the video is still online and the story questions why.

According to Selepak, “Section 230 [of the Communications Decency Act], essentially says that social media companies and internet companies are platforms, not publishers. So, it kind of gives them a free rein in terms of allowing whatever they want on their platforms, or whatever they don’t want on their platforms.”

He adds, “But if you think about a platform like Facebook, or TikTok or Instagram, it will be absolutely impossible for them to be able to review every piece of content to see if any of the content violates their terms of service. What the platforms do instead is leave it up to the users to report content.”

Posted: April 8, 2022
Category: Alumni News, College News
Tagged as: Andrew Selepak