Leifeng Network(Public number: Leifeng.com)According to reports from Russia’s TASS, Izvestia and other media on March 14, the social media platform Instagram has been banned in Russia.
The test results of the Internet connection detection website Global Check (Global Check) also showed that local IPs in Russia could not access Instagram.
As early as a few days ago, according to the TASS news agency, the Russian Federal Service for the Supervision of Telecommunications, Information Technology and Mass Media had announced the relevant decision and announced the news of the ban on Instagram.
The bureau said the decision was made because the Instagram platform would spread “calls for violence against Russians, including the Russian military.”
The remarks first came out of an internal Meta email disclosed by Reuters on March 10. The “Metaverse” company sent an email to speech moderators, saying that the hate speech policy has changed, and that Facebook and Instagram users in some countries can post calls for violence against Russian soldiers.
In addition, the email also emphasized that the hate speech policy still prohibits users from attacking Russian civilians, but if the post is in the context of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict and support for Ukraine, violent remarks can be made against Russian civilians.
The Russian side expressed strong dissatisfaction with the move of the “Metaverse” company. The Russian Federal Investigative Committee said it had filed a criminal case against the “Metaverse” company.
The Russian General Prosecutor’s Office issued a message saying that it asked the court to identify the US “Metaverse” company as an “extremist organization” and prohibit it from conducting business activities in Russia.
The Russian Communications, Information Technology and Mass Media Supervision Bureau also stated on the Russian public service website that Russia has social media such as VKontakte and hopes that the public can “quickly transition” to other platforms. The statement emphasized that one of the purposes of the ban is to ensure the mental health of the public, especially children and adolescents, and to protect them from cyberbullying and stigma.
And the bureau decided in a statement to block Instagram from 0:00 on March 14, Moscow time.
Just considering that Instagram users need time to transfer photos and videos to other social networks and notify their contacts and followers, there will be an additional 48 hours transition period for users.
In response, Nick Clegg, vice president of “Metaverse”, responded. On the one hand, he said that the “Metaverse” company “will not tolerate anti-Russian, any discrimination and intimidation of Russians or calls for violence against Russians on our (social media) platform.”
On the other hand, it also stated that the new policies of Facebook and Instagram will only apply in Ukraine, providing local users with the opportunity to “express anger against the Russian military”.
Afterwards, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zakharova said when commenting on the actions of the “Metaverse” company that American digital platforms should bear direct responsibility for “inciting Ukrainian nationalism.”
Since the Russia-Ukraine conflict, American video and social media giants, including Twitter, Facebook and YouTube, have joined forces to suppress voices from Russia. Russia’s ban on Instagram this time is Russia’s strong response to the “information war” of the West.
Since February 28, this “information war” has been in the air. Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, has announced that it will restrict access to Facebook for “Russian state media” across the EU.
Twitter also began to make special labels on “Russia Today” and the Russian Satellite News Agency, and continued to delete Russia’s statements about the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
Then, Google’s video site YouTube announced that it would block “Russia Today” and the Russian satellite news agency within the EU.
In addition, Microsoft also announced that it would no longer display products and advertisements of “Russia Today” and Satellite News Agency, and remove related applications from the App Store.