
Users report political hashtags blocked on Instagram and TikTok
By Kennedy Felton (Lifestyle Correspondent/Producer), Zachary Hill (Video Editor)
Social media platforms are hubs for political discussions. However, users on Instagram and TikTok are now raising concerns about censorship.
Media Landscape
See who else is reporting on this story and which side of the political spectrum they lean. To read other sources, click on the plus signs below. Learn more about this dataBias Distribution
Left
Meta pushes back on claims that it’s boosting Trump on Facebook and Instagram
Click to see story on NBC NewsWhat’s next after Meta scraps third party fact-checking?
Click to see story on GMA Filipino NewsHashtag #Democrats on Instagram: Users wonder about suppressed search results
Click to see story on SpiegelInstagram Hides ‘Democrats’ from Search Results Hours After Zuckerberg Attends Trump Inauguration
Click to see story on Latin TimesCensorship after Trump’s inauguration? Instagram now blocks democratic content
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Click to see story on ForbesMeta COO Sheryl Sandberg sanctioned by judge for allegedly deleting emails
Click to see story on TechCrunchExperts sound the alarm after search terms such as ‘Joe Biden’ and ‘Democrat’ are blocked on Instagram: ‘Very strange’
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Click to see story on yleCriticism grows as Meta allegedly hides Democrat hashtag
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End of ‘fact cheking’ at Meta results from “political pressure”
Click to see story on Noticias ao MinutoInstagram hides results for search query ‘Democrats’: “We are looking for a solution”
Click to see story on Het Belang van LimburgInstagram hides results for search query ‘Democrats’: “We are looking for a solution”
Click to see story on Het NieuwsbladInstagram accused of hiding search results for “Democrat”
Click to see story on PublicoSomething confusing is happening on Instagram – does a Trump ally have a hand in the game?
Click to see story on Ilta-SanomatInstagram hides the results in the search for “theleft”
Click to see story on NaftemporikiInstagram hides search for #joebiden and #fauci
Click to see story on rd.nlInstagram censors political words – and only from the left
Click to see story on watson.ch/Did Instagram block the #Democrat hashtag?
Click to see story on BFM TVChecking agency, Sleeping Giants and LGBT+ groups: AGU’s guests to discuss Meta policies
Click to see story on Revista OesteDemocrats lost for a few hours
Click to see story on RÚVInstagram blocked searches for #democrats and other political hashtags
Click to see story on Jingletree‘We’ve hidden the results’: Suddenly Meta users couldn’t search for ‘Biden’
Click to see story on DRHashtags for Obama and Biden disappeared from Instagram
Click to see story on hbl.fiGenStijl: Huuu huuu vvmu! Meta bans #democrat
Click to see story on geenstijl.nlUsers report pro-Democrat and anti-Republican hashtags blocked, Meta says a fix is incoming
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Click to see story on KahawaTunguSuspicions about Zuckerberg’s Trumpian breakthrough: Meta’s algorithm could favor Republican propaganda
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Click to see story on akelicious.netMeta under fire for auto-following Trump & Vance, Blocking Democrat hashtags
Click to see story on techissuestoday.comReports are emerging that certain political hashtags are being blocked or restricted. This issue is sparking heated debates online about freedom of speech and the role of platforms in moderating content.

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One Instagram user recently shared a screenshot showing their search results for “#Democrat.” The result displayed the message: “We’ve hidden these results.”
Another user commented that the same message appeared when they searched for “#Kamala.” These reports come amid questions about recent changes to Meta’s policies and their impact on content visibility.
Meta introduced new settings last year that automatically restrict some content. Users must manually adjust their account settings if they want full access. If the “Sensitive Content Control” is enabled, specific hashtags and search results could be filtered without users realizing it.
Meta responds to criticism
Meta spokesperson Andy Stone addressed the issue on Threads, writing, “There’s an issue affecting people’s ability to search for a number of different hashtags on Instagram—not just those on the left. We’re working quickly to resolve this.”
The controversy follows criticism of Meta’s broader moderation policies on platforms like Facebook and Instagram. Recent changes to reduce moderation have left users questioning the transparency of the company’s policies.
Trump signs executive order on censorship
Adding to the debate, President Donald Trump signed an executive order Monday, Jan. 20, targeting what he called “government censorship” online. The order aims to “secure the right of the American people to engage in constitutionally protected speech.” It also directs the attorney general to investigate past efforts to moderate speech that may have infringed on free speech rights and recommend remedial actions.
The White House stated that the order protects the First Amendment and ensures a free society.
Similar issues on TikTok
Meanwhile, TikTok users are reporting similar problems. A user shared screenshots comparing search results for “Donald Trump rigged election” across different countries.
In the U.K., the search yielded videos. However, in the U.S., users received a pop-up message saying, “No results found.” Canadian users also reported the same issue, raising questions about potential regional filtering.
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Censorship debate continues
Users point to potential political influence from the new White House administration as a possible factor in these restrictions. However, a TikTok spokesperson told Newsweek, “The platform’s policies and algorithms have not changed.”
SOURCES:
https://www.axios.com/2025/01/21/instagram-democrat-hashtags-blocked-search https://x.com/karlmaxxed/status/1881392831048389047?s=46&t=ve1WmsT68kzv0WtJKB63hw
https://www.newsweek.com/tiktok-blocking-anti-trump-content-what-we-know-2018190
[KENNEDY FELTON]
SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS ARE OFTEN THE HUB FOR POLITICAL CONVERSATIONS – BUT RECENTLY – USERS ON INSTAGRAM AND TIKTOK HAVE BEEN RAISING CONCERNS THAT THEY’RE BEING SHIELDED FROM THAT CONTENT.
REPORTS ARE EMERGING THAT CERTAIN POLITICAL HASHTAGS ARE BEING BLOCKED OR RESTRICTED. THIS HAS SPARKED DEBATES ONLINE ABOUT CENSORSHIP AND FREEDOM OF SPEECH.
ONE INSTAGRAM USER RECENTLY SHARED A SCREENSHOT OF THEIR SEARCH RESULTS FOR “HASHTAG DEMOCRAT.” THE RESPONSE? “WE’VE HIDDEN THESE RESULTS.”
ANOTHER USER COMMENTED THE SAME MESSAGE APPEARS WHEN SEARCHING “HASHTAG KAMALA.
THIS COMES AMID A RECENT UPDATE WE REPORTED ON RELATING TO META BEING CRITICIZED FOR CHANGES TO ITS MODERATION POLICIES ON PLATFORMS LIKE FACEBOOK AND INSTAGRAM.
THERE’S ALSO NEW SETTINGS TO TAKE INTO ACCOUNT. STARTING LAST YEAR… SOME CONTENT HAS AUTOMATICALLY BEEN RESTRICTED UNLESS USERS MANUALLY ADJUST THEIR ACCOUNT SETTINGS. IF YOUR SETTINGS DEFAULT TO “SENSITIVE CONTENT CONTROL” CERTAIN SEARCH RESULTS COULD BE FILTERED OUT WITHOUT YOU EVEN REALIZING IT.
EVEN FURTHER… PRESIDENT TRUMP SIGNED AN EXECUTIVE ORDER MONDAY AIMED AT WHAT HE CALLS “GOVERNMENT CENSORSHIP” ONLINE.
THE ORDER INTENDS TO secure the right of the American people to engage in constitutionally protected speech
[TAKE VO]
IT ALSO CALLS FOR THE ATTORNEY GENERAL TO INVESTIGATE CENSORSHIP EFFORTS OVER THE PAST FOUR YEARS AND RECOMMEND ACTIONS TO ADDRESS ANY VIOLATIONS.
THE WHITE HOUSE SAYS THIS IS ESSENTIAL TO PROTECTING THE FIRST AMENDMENT.
META SPOKESPERSON ANDY STONE ADDRESSED THE INSTAGRAM ISSUE ON THREADS – WRITING
“There’s an issue affecting people’s ability to search for a number of different hashtags on Instagram – not just those on the left. We’re working quickly to resolve this.”
OVER ON TIK-TOK… ONE USER SHARED SCREENSHOTS FROM DIFFERENT COUNTRIES SEARCHING FOR THE PHRASE “DONALD TRUMP RIGGED ELECTION.”
IN THE U-K… SEARCH RESULTS DISPLAY VIDEOS… BUT IN THE U-S – A POP UP MESSAGE SAYS “NO RESULTS FOUND.”
CANADIAN USERS ALSO REPORT SIMILAR ISSUES… RAISING QUESTIONS ABOUT REGIONAL FILTERING.
[TAKE VO]
FOR BOTH META AND TIKTOK… USERS ARE POINTING FINGERS AT POTENTIAL POLITICAL INFLUENCE UNDER THE NEW WHITE HOUSE ADMINISTRATION.
HOWEVER… A TIKTOK SPOKESPERSON TOLD NEWSWEEK THAT THE PLATFORM’S POLICIES AND ALGORITHMS HAVE NIGHT CHANGED.
FOR SAN IM KF… DOWNLOAD OUR APP OR VISIT SAN DOT COM FOR MORE.
Media Landscape
See who else is reporting on this story and which side of the political spectrum they lean. To read other sources, click on the plus signs below. Learn more about this dataBias Distribution
Left
Meta pushes back on claims that it’s boosting Trump on Facebook and Instagram
Click to see story on NBC NewsWhat’s next after Meta scraps third party fact-checking?
Click to see story on GMA Filipino NewsHashtag #Democrats on Instagram: Users wonder about suppressed search results
Click to see story on SpiegelInstagram Hides ‘Democrats’ from Search Results Hours After Zuckerberg Attends Trump Inauguration
Click to see story on Latin TimesCensorship after Trump’s inauguration? Instagram now blocks democratic content
Click to see story on www.t-online.deInstagram hides search results for ‘Democrats’
Click to see story on BBC NewsMeta Faces Backlash As Democrat-Related Terms Disappear From Instagram
Click to see story on ForbesMeta COO Sheryl Sandberg sanctioned by judge for allegedly deleting emails
Click to see story on TechCrunchExperts sound the alarm after search terms such as ‘Joe Biden’ and ‘Democrat’ are blocked on Instagram: ‘Very strange’
Click to see story on Algemeen DagbladSearch results referring to Democratic politicians disappeared from Instagram
Click to see story on yleCriticism grows as Meta allegedly hides Democrat hashtag
Click to see story on ASUntracked Bias
End of ‘fact cheking’ at Meta results from “political pressure”
Click to see story on Noticias ao MinutoInstagram hides results for search query ‘Democrats’: “We are looking for a solution”
Click to see story on Het Belang van LimburgInstagram hides results for search query ‘Democrats’: “We are looking for a solution”
Click to see story on Het NieuwsbladInstagram accused of hiding search results for “Democrat”
Click to see story on PublicoSomething confusing is happening on Instagram – does a Trump ally have a hand in the game?
Click to see story on Ilta-SanomatInstagram hides the results in the search for “theleft”
Click to see story on NaftemporikiInstagram hides search for #joebiden and #fauci
Click to see story on rd.nlInstagram censors political words – and only from the left
Click to see story on watson.ch/Did Instagram block the #Democrat hashtag?
Click to see story on BFM TVChecking agency, Sleeping Giants and LGBT+ groups: AGU’s guests to discuss Meta policies
Click to see story on Revista OesteDemocrats lost for a few hours
Click to see story on RÚVInstagram blocked searches for #democrats and other political hashtags
Click to see story on Jingletree‘We’ve hidden the results’: Suddenly Meta users couldn’t search for ‘Biden’
Click to see story on DRHashtags for Obama and Biden disappeared from Instagram
Click to see story on hbl.fiGenStijl: Huuu huuu vvmu! Meta bans #democrat
Click to see story on geenstijl.nlUsers report pro-Democrat and anti-Republican hashtags blocked, Meta says a fix is incoming
Click to see story on NeowinInstagram hides search results for ‘Democrats’
Click to see story on KahawaTunguSuspicions about Zuckerberg’s Trumpian breakthrough: Meta’s algorithm could favor Republican propaganda
Click to see story on editorialedomani.itMeta working to fix an issue on instagram hiding search results for Democrat and Democrats
Click to see story on cedarnews.netInstagram hides search results for ‘Democrats’
Click to see story on ResetEraMeta is abandoning fact checking
Click to see story on The Independent Uganda:Meta Removes Transgender and Nonbinary Themes from Messenger, Sparking Employee Protests – Akelicious
Click to see story on akelicious.netMeta under fire for auto-following Trump & Vance, Blocking Democrat hashtags
Click to see story on techissuestoday.comStraight to your inbox.
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