Facebook has responded to the controversial censoring of a picture of a terrified child escaping from war on the ground of nudity posted by the editor of Norwegian newspaper, Aftenposten.The Norwegian prime minister, Erna Solberg, who also posted the famous Nick Ut photo where it had 2000 shares and 7000 likes before it was taken down again, described the act as a wrong step that curb the freedom of speech.
South Vietnamese forces follow after terrified children, including 9-year-old Kim Phuc, center, as they run down Route 1 near Trang Bang after an aerial napalm attack on suspected Viet Cong hiding places on June 8, 1972. Nick Ut / AP
In the post, she said " This picture is part of the world history I appreciate the work of Facebook and other media outlets in stopping pictures and content that show abuse and violence. It is important that we all contribute in the fight against violence and child abuse. But Facebook is taking a wrong step when they censor images like these. It works to curb the freedom of speech”.
Facebook in response to Aftenposten said "While we recognize that this photo is iconic, it’s difficult to create a distinction between allowing a photograph of a nude child in one instance and not others. We try to find the right balance between enabling people to express themselves while maintaining a safe and respectful experience for our global community. Our solutions won’t always be perfect, but we will continue to try to improve our policies and the ways in which we apply them."
The photo was taken down in compliance with facebook’s policy on nudity, abuse and violence.
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