Instagram researches and assesses the information available to us regarding factors that may indicate editorial control by a government. These factors could include:
- Mission statement, mandate, and/or public reporting on how the organization defines and accomplishes its journalistic mission
- Ownership structures (example: disclosure of ownership structures such as information on owners, stakeholders, board members, management, government appointees in leadership positions, disclosure on direct or indirect ownership by entities or individuals holding elected office)
- Editorial guidelines (example: transparency around its sources of content, independence and diversity of sources)
- Information about newsroom leadership and staff
- Sources of funding and revenue
- Governance and accountability mechanisms (example: internal accountability mechanisms, correctional policies, procedure for complaints, external assessments and oversight boards, rules governing their composition and appointment procedures)
Instagram also considers country-specific factors, including press freedom, and references open source data, such as research conducted by academics and leading experts.
Instagram believes that governments may exert editorial control over state-controlled media in a range of ways and to different degrees. If Instagram believes that the evidence assessed suggests that editorial control by a government exists, we will label the organization unless we consider there is sufficient evidence of protections in place to ensure editorial independence.
An organization that is seeking to prove its editorial independence should be able to show evidence consistent with editorial independence. For example:
- A statute in the host country that clearly protects the editorial independence of the organization
- Established procedures, processes, and protections at the media organization to ensure the implementation of editorial independence
- An assessment by an independent, credible, external organization finding that editorial independence is in fact maintained and that established procedures have been followed
If Instagram believes there is sufficient evidence of editorial independence, we will not label the organization.