School
of Creative
Industries
Nordiyana bte Hamsani
Nordiyana Hamsani is a photographer, arts educator and arts manager. She has experience in events management, with an interest in visual arts, history and social media. She has exhibited her photography works and organised exhibitions, events and shows in Singapore. She has taught art to children and organised career workshop and networking events.
Work
Past projects: ARTWALK Little India (2019), public exhibitions at Singapore Botanic Gardens (2019).
Thesis abstract
Censorship on social media platforms: an investigation of Instagram and its community guidelines.
Independent artists and models use the Instagram (IG) platform to market and publish their works to reach out to followers and potential clients. Instagram has recently begun enforcing Community Guidelines and Terms of Use (CGTUs) more strictly, with an aggressive campaign that has seen an increase in posts removed and the banning of accounts that were deemed as problematic for a more diverse audience. However, it is unclear as to how images should be portrayed to comply with the CGTUs, thus many inconsistencies in enforcement exist. The purpose of this study is to describe the double standards of Instagram and how the removal of accounts limits independent artists and models and creative expression. The study conducted a qualitative comparative examination of different IG posts to highlight inconsistencies between different users with similar content. It also conducted a survey to quantify IG users' experiences with Instagram. Ultimately, the work presented here attempts to summarize the current state of censorship on Instagram, and provide insight on how social media can affect freedom of expression and cultural exchange in the digital age.