Inside ‘Facebook Jail’: The Secret Rules That Put Users in the Doghouse

Facebook's newly formed Oversight Board—a group of 20 lawyers, professors and other independent experts who consider appeals to decisions made by the company—has been charged with interpreting Facebook’s numerous detailed rules governing everything from the depiction of graffiti to swearing at newsworthy figures. The board’s most closely watched decision is expected May 5—whether Facebook appropriately applied its rules when it booted former President Donald Trump indefinitely from the platform. Lawmakers have repeatedly grilled Mark Zuckerberg about the issue, prompting the CEO to repeat his mantra that nobody would ever think such delicate work should be handled by a private company. Still, the challenge remains: how best to police a platform that every day sees billions of posts, comments and photos.