The remaining 21% believed that over-moderation worsened during the elections, with a surge in errors. One editor noted: “During the election period, platforms took more stringent actions [including] deletions, factcheck labels, and reduced reach.” Labels in particular delegitimised the media at the exact moment it was needed to counter military disinformation and propaganda around the elections. 21% believed that overmoderation worsened during the elections, with a surge in errors When ranking platforms by their level of restrictiveness, a clear consensus emerged. Facebook was identified as the most significant hurdle to free expression, with 65% of media stating that it deleted a greater proportion of content than any other platform. This was followed by YouTube (20%) and TikTok (15%). These rankings suggest that the platforms most vital for audience reach may also be the environments where media face the most aggressive deletions. 4.6. The failure of recourse and appeal Most digital platforms have mechanisms for recourse for deleted content, including via appeals systems. However, for the vast majority of media, challenging an unfair removal was regarded as an exercise in futility. While 88% of media attempted to appeal deletions, 82% found the process entirely useless. “It is like shouting into a void,” one journalist said. Another noted, “We tried to appeal, but it did not work. Instead, we lost a lot of audience reach, all because of the platform.” Appeals regarding political content were described by the media as particularly difficult, even when the newsworthiness was undeniable. An editor shared their frustration: ���I feel like it is much harder to win when it comes to political content.” While another stated that, “media appeals should work more often given that political content is very newsworthy.” The lack of human contact in the platform moderation systems and a failure to understand the Myanmar context remained critical concerns for media. Most platforms were believed to have deprioritised specialised teams dealing with media, leaving the outlets with “no human to listen.” When asked to rank the most difficult platforms to reach for media-specific support, 48% of media said “Facebook”, followed by YouTube (28%) and TikTok (24%). Even when civil society organisations intervene with the platforms, the process is slow. As one editor stated: “Even if you eventually get the content restored, the news is dead by the time the platform replies.” In a 24-hour news cycle during an election, a takedown is a failure, and a reversal a week later does not constitute a success. Page 15 of 19