Instagram removes Al Yankovic’s ‘Pablo Escobar’ post | Tech Reddy

Instagram has removed the post of Weird Al Yankovic and his “close friend Pablo Escobar” for violating community guidelines.

Weird Al took to Twitter to share how happy he was to be asked to share a photo of a post that was so funny.

Weird Al tried to post a photo with the image of Pablo Escobar with the caption: “Okay, well, I admit that there are a few creative things with #WEIRDTheAlYankovicStory. For example, in real life, a Pablo Escobar and I are close friends.

The viral prank was removed by Meta’s Instagram because it violated community guidelines for “violence and abusive behavior.”

“Our guidelines encourage people to express themselves with respect for all. If you think we have made a mistake, you can ask for a review of our decision,” he added.

A frantic Weird Al captioned the photo of the Instagram decision to his five million followers: “Ha! Okay, Instagram…”

Fellow oddball celebrity Tommy Wiseau responded to Weird Al’s tweet with his own Instagram photo taking down the content.

“It’s Instagram!” Wiseau tweeted about his classic movie The Room.

“I’ve asked for a review several times, no response. You’re ripping me off!”

Match Madness

Weird Al’s problem with having a photo on Instagram with the fake Pablo Escobar reflects the strange and unfair world of social media moderation.

Other Twitter users shared their sad experiences on Instagram under Weird Al’s post.

“Instagram is doing strange things these days. A month ago my whole account was blocked, because they thought I was a robot,” one user wrote.

However, it’s not just Instagram. Earlier this month, astronomer and photographer Mary McIntyre was locked out of her Twitter account for three months after a video of a meteor she posted on the platform was labeled as ” confidential content.”

McIntyre’s video was flagged by Twitter’s automated system, and he was given only one option: delete the tweet. If he did, it would mean he admitted to the allegations that the content violated the social media company’s rules.

“It’s just crazy … I don’t really want it on my record that I’ve shared bitter things that I don’t,” he told the BBC.

Photo credits: Header image licensed via Depositphotos.