Report: Instagram Did Not Remove 93% of Abusive Comments Targeting Women Politicians

According to a report released on Wednesday by the Center for Countering Digital Hate, Instagram failed to remove a staggering 93% of abusive comments aimed at women politicians from both Democratic and Republican parties. This troubling statistic highlights the platform’s shortcomings in moderating harmful content, particularly comments laden with racist and gender-based abuse.

The report details an investigation in which 1,000 of the most severe abusive comments were logged using Instagram’s reporting tool. Alarmingly, no action was taken on 926 of these comments, leaving a substantial amount of hate speech to persist on the platform.

A spokesperson from the CCDH stated, “When our researchers reported 1,000 of the worst of these comments — sexist and racist abuse, death and rape threats, and rule-breaking offenses — Instagram allowed 93% to remain on the platform.” Furthermore, the organization criticized Instagram for failing to uphold its community guidelines, asserting that this negligence undermines women’s rights and opportunities in the public sphere.

Women politicians such as Vice President Kamala Harris, who is poised to be the Democratic nominee for the presidency, have faced an onslaught of abusive comments. The CCDH noted that even in Harris’s case, 92% of reported abusive comments remained visible online.

The harmful rhetoric primarily aims to marginalize women in politics, employing threats of violence and gendered insults to intimidate them. Among the reported comments were harrowing threats like “death to her and her supporters” and deeply disturbing statements such as “Make rape legal.” Disturbingly, racist comments also included derogatory remarks about Black individuals, one of which Instagram dismissed as not violating its community guidelines.

Even a comment threatening harm to Harris stated, “You and your entire family deserve to die a horrible death.” Similarly, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Republican from Georgia, was subjected to vicious comments, including a post that called for “death to her and her supporters.”

The CCDH articulated that the hostility directed at Greene reflects not only the broader trends of abuse affecting all women politicians but also the animosity she has exhibited toward her colleagues, suggesting a cycle of incitement.

Other notable figures, including former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, have also been targets of uncensored hate online. One particular post referencing the violent hammer attack on her husband included the statement, “Why weren’t you home when old hammer head got attacked? It would have been awesome to see your knees in pieces.” Another comment directed at Rep. Lauren Boebert ominously stated, “Personally I wish that blood clot had killed her.”

Vice President Harris has faced an array of both racist and sexually derogatory comments as well, including the use of racial slurs. The CCDH is calling for Instagram to rigorously enforce its existing policies against violent threats and abuse, advocating for collaborations with experts in gender-based violence to ensure that these policies truly reflect the experiences of women and marginalized individuals in the public eye.

The organization’s analysis included a review of 560,000 comments posted on Instagram regarding ten female incumbents, identifying over 20,000 as potentially toxic using Google’s Perspective AI tool. Their findings are consistent with prior studies, such as one from the 2020 U.S. congressional elections, which found that women of color were disproportionately targeted with sexist, racist, and violent abuse online.

The CCDH’s report urges Instagram to improve transparency and accountability in enforcing its community guidelines against gender-based abuse and violent threats. Additionally, it implores lawmakers to take action to hold social media companies responsible for their lapses in addressing online abuse.