Search engine discourse analysis: how ‘shadowban’ affects policy

Amidst company denials, public interest in ‘shadowbans’ has grown. Without notifying the creator, ‘shadowbans’ limit the visibility of user-generated content. Shadowbans can be an effective content moderation technique, although they are subject to the same policy concerns. Existing research has focused on technologically demonstrating shadowbans, while other research has focused on people’s experiences, including how social media users use the word ‘shadowban’ to call for platform accountability. However, less research has focused on media discourses. Thus, I ask: what does ‘shadowban’ <i>do</i> in search engine results? Using Search Engine Discourse Analysis (SEDA) of 107 search engine results, I argue that when incorporated into media discourses returned via search engine, ‘shadowban’ maintains existing power dynamics through attributions of agency, strategically managing conflict, and producing markets, all of which have the potential to shape policy debates. Future discussions of ‘shadowbans’ should critically attend to power differentials in the public sphere. Moreover, if governance is legitimized through media, this article demonstrates how critical analysis of how media sources frame platform governance is an important line of inquiry.