Vilification on social media is prohibited - unless it's fatphobic. Why?

While appearance-based abuse can be reported on most social media platforms, many fat users say more often than not, nothing is done about it.

Death threats can be among the types of abuse fat people received on social media. Source: SBS News

Key Points

• Many fat social media users say when they report abuse to social media companies, nothing is typically done about it.
• Experts say fatphobic abuse can have serious health impacts on those who receive it and observe it.
• Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, and Tik Tok say they don't allow any kind of bullying on their platforms.

This article contains references to suicide/self-harm.

Go to report an abusive post on Twitter and you'll find that you're met with a list of "protected categories".

They include race, ethnicity, caste, or national origin; religion; sexual orientation; gender/gender identity; disability; disease; and age.

Body size isn't included, and while appearance-based abuse is reportable on TikTok, Facebook, and Instagram, many fat users claim the platforms rarely take action to address it.

Nic McDermid said simply existing online as an "unapologetic fat person" has resulted in her being sent death threats, along with people telling her she should kill herself.

"There are times where you're absolutely being pummelled with people who think that it's their business to really just dehumanise and demonise your entire existence," the Sydney-based fat activist told SBS News.

"It's absolutely ruthless. And there have been a number of times where I can't hit the block button fast enough; there's just message after message after message.

"It's really vile, disgusting stuff that I can't even repeat, stuff that I don't want to subject anybody else to, and that remains constant."

Nic McDermid said some of the fatphobic abuse she's received on social media has included death threats. Source: Supplied / Nic McDermid

The 37-year-old said a few months ago she had to resort to going to the police because she had been "constantly bombarded with horrendous abuse" over a 72-hour period, and Instagram had done nothing about it.

"I was reporting and blocking, that sort of thing, and I kept getting messages back to say 'this post doesn't violate community guidelines'," she said.

Melbourne-based body positivity activist Lacey-Jade Christie said she finds the hate she receives on TikTok particularly "relentless".

"If you end up on the wrong side of TikTok, oh my God, it can be quite damaging," the 33-year-old told SBS News.

Ms Christie described a feature on TikTok where users can feature someone else's story next to a video of them reacting.

"I've had videos duetted of mine, where people are vomiting on the side or like, people who have left nasty comments and stuff.

"I report as many as I can, but sometimes they get a bit much, and like eight times out of 10 it'll come back as no issue."

Lacey-Jade Christie is a Melbourne-based body positivity activist. Source: Instagram / Lacey-Jade Christie

Ms Christie said when she's "inundated" with hate, she’ll sometimes have to resort to turning her comments off, or even deleting the video that's attracted the attention.

"I have thick skin, but there's only so much a person should have to take," she said.

Ms Christie said the fatphobia she's experienced hasn't only been perpetrated by users, but the platforms themselves.

"The TikTok algorithm, for example, picks up the amount of skin that you're showing," she said.

"So if I wear a bikini, a lot of the time my videos get taken down, because they're like 'you're showing too much skin', when in reality I'm wearing a high-waisted, full brief bikini, and there are thinner people on the internet that are wearing much less.

Why is fatphobia so pervasive?

Professor Deborah Lupton from UNSW’s Centre for Social Research in Health and Social Policy Research Centre said anti-fat discourse has been entrenched in Western society for decades.

"If you look at the history of the way that people of different body sizes have been portrayed in popular media, for example, even in medical texts, then you see that for a long time there's been a lot of negative portrayals of fat people," she told SBS News.

Professor Lupton said that while she's noticed some progress has been made in recent years, fat shaming still doesn't seem to be viewed in the same way as the abuse of other marginalised groups.

Professor Deborah Lupton is a sociologist who's been researching ideas of the body for decades. Source: Supplied / UNSW

"The general public has become aware of the importance of not shaming people for their sexuality, their gender identity, their race and ethnicity, and people have become more sensitised to human rights, but it is interesting that it doesn't seem to have happened to it to any significant extent with fatness," she said.

Dr Ranjani Utpala is clinical director at the Butterfly Foundation, a charity for Australians with eating disorders and body image issues and those who support them. She said while social media isn't to blame for just how "pervasive" fatphobia is in society, it can reinforce harmful stereotypes about people who live in larger bodies or have a higher weight.

"The user may internalise these beliefs, knowingly or unknowingly, and they might themselves continue to perpetuate weight stigma … rather than working on the mechanisms that can stop the behaviour and stop the bullying and the abuse that can happen on social media," she told SBS News.

What are the health impacts of fatphobia on social media?

Dr Utpala said both being the subject of and observing weight shaming on social media can be "incredibly detrimental" to someone’s physical and mental health.

"It can have a real impact on a person's self-esteem, on their confidence, the way that they view themselves, their mood, and also can lead to behaviours like binge eating, or increased food consumption, you know, the stress, and also sort of engaging in disordered eating or exercising kind of behaviours,” she said.

Dr Utpala said it's "particularly harmful" for those with eating disorders.

"It can be quite common for people with eating disorders, irrespective of their weight, shape or size, to internalise that fatphobia," she said.

Dr Ranjani Utpala is clinical director at the Butterfly Foundation. Source: Supplied

"That sort of thing can lead to quite significant challenges in them accessing treatment or being able to implement some of the strategies that they might be learning on their recovery journey."

Ms McDermid said it's important to acknowledge that fatphobia "disproportionately" impacts people who hold other marginalised identities, as well.

"Intersections such as racism and homophobia, transphobia, ableism, neurodivergence - all of that sort of stuff compounds our experience, too," she said.

How can social media platforms be made safer for fat people?

TikTok denied it does, or has ever, moderated content on the basis of shape, size, or ability.

"We pride ourselves on the incredible diversity of our community and strive to build an environment where everyone feels welcome, safe and comfortable to express themselves," a spokesperson told SBS News in a statement.

"Our Community Guidelines clearly state that bullying, abuse or harassment, among other things, will not be tolerated, and any content that violates these guidelines (including video, audio, comments or other text) will be removed. We proactively take down hundreds of thousands of videos every year because they violate these guidelines.

"TikTok also allows users to set their own privacy settings on their account, which means they can decide who can see their videos, and who is able to comment on these videos."

Meta, the tech company which owns Instagram and Facebook, also said bullying isn't allowed on its platforms.

"We've developed industry-leading tools to stop this behaviour and help people protect themselves," a spokesperson told SBS News in a statement.

"Features like Restrict lets people hide content from bullies without the bully knowing, and Hidden Words allows people to automatically filter out offensive language from comments and DMs."

But given her own experiences, Ms McDermid said those features clearly aren't serving their purpose.

“What exactly are these protections and reporting mechanisms for if we're not protecting people who are actively being harmed, and death threats being sent, and just absolutely vile, disgusting messages about a person's humanity?" she said.

Ms McDermid said all social media companies need to make a collective effort to actively protect fat people from harm on their platforms.

"I don't think if one platform were to introduce something [it would work], I think it has to be a really focused effort across all social media platforms," she said.

Despite all of the hate she receives online, Ms Christie is grateful for the community she’s been able to create on social media with like-minded people from all over the world.

"The best part about my whole job is getting messages from people telling me that I've helped them view the way they look in the mirror or that they wore a crop top for the first time.. stuff like that just makes my absolute day and it definitely makes it all worth it."

SBS News has contacted Twitter for comment.

Readers seeking support for eating disorders and body image concerns can contact Butterfly Foundation on 1800 33 4673. More information is available at butterfly.org.au

Readers seeking support with mental health can contact Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636. More information is available at beyondblue.org.au. Embrace Multicultural Mental Health supports people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds.