Facebook, YouTube and Twitter Remove Violent Video After India Order
The video, from an incident that took place on May 4, went viral on social media overnight in India.
(Bloomberg) -- US internet companies Meta Platforms Inc., Alphabet Inc.’s Google and Twitter Inc. are complying with Indian federal orders to take down a video of two women being paraded naked by a group of men in a northeastern state, people familiar with the matter said.
The video, from an incident that took place on May 4, went viral on social media overnight in India, triggering the first public comments from Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the violence in Manipur state, where ethic groups have clashed for nearly two months.
Some social media companies began removing photos and videos of the incident as it violated their rules even before New Delhi issued emergency blocking orders, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the details are private.
India’s technology ministry, Google, Meta and Twitter didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
The Supreme Court of India has called the video “deeply disturbing” and asked the federal and state governments — both led by Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party — to report steps taken against the perpetrators at a hearing scheduled for July 28.
Journalist Barkha Dutt said the implementation of the blocking orders have been overly aggressive and that they’re obstructing news publishers’ ability to report on the event.
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