Meta India advisory: diversify feeds, follow the law

The Centre has asked Meta to review its recommendation algorithms and make sure users of Facebook and Instagram are not exposed to a single or limited set of narratives. The Meta India advisory, dated 10 October and issued by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), was first reported by PTI.

"Ensure that recommendation systems do not result in disproportionate exposure of users to a single or limited set of narratives, and endeavour to provide appropriate diversity of relevant and credible information," the advisory said.

The ministry also asked Meta to strengthen its systems for the rapid identification, review and escalation of content that gains wide reach through recommendation systems and could cause public confusion, apprehension, violence or disturbance to public order.

The Meta India advisory is the latest in a run of advisories MeitY has sent platforms this month. A separate advisory on 8 October asked all social media intermediaries to label or add context to manipulated, synthetic or misleading content and to prioritise complaints from authorised government agencies.

What the Meta India advisory asks Meta to change

Meta must provide adequate context for photographs, videos, graphics and other material depicting ongoing public events, particularly where the authenticity, date, location or circumstances of the content may not be readily apparent to users, the MeitY advisory said.

The Meta India advisory also wants a review of recommendation and content-ranking mechanisms so that potentially misleading, manipulated or out-of-context material is not disproportionately amplified or repeatedly recommended. The ministry flagged old or selectively edited visuals presented as current events, misleading claims about emergencies, restrictions or police action, and audio-visual material on law-and-order situations shown without adequate context.

The advisory cites the Information Technology Act 2000 and the due diligence obligations under the IT Rules 2021, which require intermediaries to inform users about prohibited information, including content likely to cause public disorder or incite a cognisable offence. Meta has been asked to act with immediate effect and to apprise the ministry of the measures it takes.

Why the Meta India advisory was issued now

The advisory does not name any specific incident. But it comes amid protests in Delhi by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) and opposition parties demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.

MediaNama reported that MeitY issued the advisory on the day Delhi Police detained CJP leaders at the protests and the internet was shut down for 24 hours within 4 km of Jantar Mantar. The CJP's Instagram account had 25.1 million followers as of 19 October, against the BJP's 10 million, according to MediaNama.

Ministry sources told PTI that agencies had reported Meta's systems appeared to favour one kind of content over others, and were not promoting different narratives equally. How recommendation algorithms shape what users see on Facebook and Instagram is now the question at the centre of the Meta India advisory.

The response to the Meta India advisory

Apar Gupta, founder director of the Internet Freedom Foundation, told PTI the advisory is not legally binding but amounts to a "continuing censorship directive". He said the phrases used in the advisory are not tied to any provision of the IT Act or the IT Rules, and called on MeitY to withdraw it. Meta should publicly disclose every takedown and every act of downranking carried out under it, he said.

The ministry has said the MeitY advisory is meant to support responsible dissemination of information while respecting lawful expression and legitimate public discourse. The Meta India advisory is not legally binding, a point Gupta stressed, but the ministry expects a reply. Whether Meta changes its recommendation algorithms in response will be reported back to the ministry, which asked the company to apprise it of the measures taken.