Facebook Blocks Cannabis Searches
[dropcap class=”kp-dropcap”]F[/dropcap]acebook recently began blocking search results that include the words “cannabis” and “marijuana.” People on social media have been vocal and are not happy about the changes. While cannabis-related pages remain up as of today, blocking search results can make it nearly impossible for cannabis-related businesses to be found on Facebook.
The “Purge of 2016” cleared out or limited many important cannabis accounts, but it unfortunately won’t be the last. In 2016, Facebook and Instagram launched aggressive campaigns against cannabis, suspending accounts like Incredibles, Harborside Health, Dixie Elixirs and Center Mass Media, a cannabis marketing company. Now new limitations are being implemented.
On the morning of July 31, some Facebook users immediately noticed that you can’t conduct a search using certain cannabis-related words. When CULTURE tried it, search results were blocked for posts, pages or groups that contain banned cannabis words.
Facebook’s “Community Standards” list bans objectionable content, but Facebook pages like “White-Wing Politics” or “White Panther Party” remain up. Many have questioned if informative cannabis pages are more objectionable than white nationalism.
The platform’s ad policy is not that much different. According to Facebook’s ad policy, “ads must not promote the sale or use of illegal, prescription, or recreational drugs.” But Facebook takes a step further to clarify that its policy includes cannabis-related items. That includes paraphernalia “such as bongs, rolling papers, and vaporized delivery devices.”
When Instagram started giving cannabis accounts grief, some people flocked to MassRoots, which freely allows cannabis posts and has many of the same features as Instagram.
Wow. Facebook is shadow-banning @BCCinfo_dca, the California state agency regulating cannabis, putting it on the same level as InfoWars. pic.twitter.com/rFipqeWSSa
— Sylvia Chi, Esq. (@sylviachiesq) July 31, 2018
Even the Bureau of Cannabis Control (BCC), a California state agency, can’t be found using Facebook’s search bar. “We have reached out to Facebook with no response so far,” BCC spokesman Alex Traverso told Marijuana Moment. “This is the first time something like this has happened. In fact, we’ve even done promoted posts on Facebook before without any issue.”
