X announced that it will notify users when their posts have a limited visibility due to compliance with local laws. The novelty expands the transparency tool “Under the Hood“, introduced to show users any labels applied to their accounts or content that may influence their visibility on the platform.
The new system will also report when posts are penalized in ranking due to government-mandated content filters. Previously, users couldn’t tell if their account or their posts had been labeled or subjected to a downrankingfeeding numerous accusations of “shadowban” against the platform.
The tool “Under the Hood” was introduced in August to provide greater visibility into X’s moderation decisions. From the app settings, who posted at least 10 posts during the month can download their aggregate statistics in the form of a JSON filea data format. The file can be analyzed via an AI chatbot.
X and the new visibility management for each account
Now the same process will allow you to check the visibility of an account or its posts has been restricted because X is complying with local laws. The file will also indicate what content was blacked out in a particular country following a legal request and which country made the request. Information will be available at the account and post level.
Governments can justify these requests with different reasons, including laws against hate speechcontent related to terrorism or electoral rules. Freedom of expression groups, however, argue that some countries also use these laws to suppress political dissent. X does not present this interpretation as a conclusion, but makes the context of the restrictions more visible.
The update is part of a series of transparency initiatives launched by X. These include the publication of the algorithm code “For you“, That selects posts shown in the feed, along with opening other parts of the code. X added details about the model setup, filters, and ranking system, including the parameters used to weight the different signals that determine what content is shown.
