Outsourced justice: The case of the Facebook Oversight Board

In this article, we explore the possibilities for the self-regulation of online platforms, here by using Facebook’s Oversight Board (OB) as an example. First, we analyse and systematize how the OB fits in the mosaic of internet regulation. Our analysis shows that the OB has tried to lay the foundation for global self-regulation, but because of its limited jurisdiction and indicative nature, it falls short of becoming a real ‘supreme court’ of Facebook. In addition, although the OB is a positive attempt to deal with many problems, it does not seem to be able to process enough cases, relies on idiosyncratic standards instead of general rules and principles and has problems deciding which human rights principles it should follow. Additionally, the OB is not compatible with the Digital Services Act (DSA) of the European Union or with the recent initiatives for social media councils.