Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia \u2013 Communications and Digital Affairs Minister\nMeutya Hafid has raised concerns about social media algorithms amid\nallegations of shadowbanning of content related to forest and land\nfires. She said the ministry continues to push platforms to be\ntransparent about their algorithms.<\/p>\n
What people see and consume on social media should be a matter of\nchoice for users, she said, rather than something controlled\nunilaterally by technology companies.<\/p>\n
\u201cRegarding allegations that information about forest and land fires\nis being restricted on the basis of platform Community Guidelines, the\nMinistry of Communications and Digital Affairs is continuing to push\nplatforms to ensure accountability and transparency in their\nalgorithms,\u201d Meutya said in an official statement, quoted on Thursday\n(22 October 2026).<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat we see and consume on social media should be the right of users\nas consumers to choose, not something dictated unilaterally by\ntechnology companies,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n
Meutya said the public was also encouraged to submit complaints or\nappeals to social media platforms if they believed their service had\nbeen disrupted. They should also report the matter to the ministry.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf anyone believes there has been a service disruption affecting\nposts about forest and land fires on Meta, TikTok or another platform,\nsubmit a complaint or appeal to the platform concerned and report it to\nus as well,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
In the statement, Meutya denied that the ministry had requested the\nremoval of content to limit information about forest and land fires in\nseveral parts of Indonesia.<\/p>\n
She said information about such fires was also important to the\ngovernment because it could help inform the response.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe government is also increasing information about forest and land\nfires on its social media channels as part of public communications. The\ngovernment welcomes factual, credible and accountable information about\nthese fires,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Allegations of shadowbanning \u2013 in which the reach of content is\nreduced \u2013 have recently emerged in relation to posts about forest and\nland fires on several social media platforms. This has significantly\nreduced engagement with the content.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/communications-minister-urges-social-media-algorithm-transparency-asks-users-to-report-issues-1792637431", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }