A Facebook page named Daily Biplobi Kantho, with more than 72,000 followers, presents itself as a media outlet.
Since its creation in March 2025, the page has changed its name twice -- first from Cholti Pothe to NISAD VLOGS, and later to Daily Biplobi Kantho -- before adopting the branding and appearance of a legitimate news platform.
On April 18, the page published a reel of actress Keya Payel that appeared to be recorded without consent, using deliberate camera angles and continuing to film even after she objected.
The video quickly drew a flood of sexually suggestive comments. Within two days, the page uploaded at least 20 more reels featuring the same actress. Most of these clips shifted focus away from any news context, relying instead on selective framing and zoomed-in shots that emphasised her body.
A review of the page’s output shows this was not an isolated incident but part of a broader content strategy. The visuals are frequently decontextualised, slowed down, and framed to foreground physical appearance rather than events or information -- most often with women as the subject.
That pattern extends well beyond a single page. The Daily Star identified at least 30 Facebook pages posting similar content and reviewed around 100 reels posted on them.
Of these pages, 24, including Daily Biplobi Kantho, describe themselves as “Media/News Company” on Facebook. The six others call themselves “Digital Creator”. However, none of them is listed as media outlets on the information ministry website.
Across them, actresses, models, female politicians, academics, and other women are repeatedly featured in videos edited to strip away context and draw attention to specific body parts.
Administrators of two pages -- Daily Biplobi Kantho and Telebangla.com -- acknowledged to The Daily Star that the approach is aimed at gaining followers and engagements, which eventually help monetise the page.
Salma Ahmed, an associate professor of Journalism and Media Studies at Jahangirnagar University, warned that such portrayals of women can have lasting consequences.
“Repeated exposure to body‑focused visuals can distort perceptions, reinforcing the idea that a woman’s value lies in her physical appearance while her identity, intellect, and work are sidelined,” she told The Daily Star.
She added that the trend also increases risks in digital spaces by normalising harassment, trolling, and stalking. “When engagement becomes the primary goal, respect and accountability are often compromised, making online spaces increasingly hostile,” she said.
An analysis of the 100 reels shows that even when captions appear neutral or informational, the visuals often tell a different story.
Across many posts, zoom‑ins, slow motion, and selective framing are used not to document events but to redirect attention towards women’s bodies, stripping away the original context.
For example, a page named Ovijatra posted a reel of political trainer Meghna Alam with the caption, “Meghna Alam joins VP Nur’s party.”
While the caption suggested a political development, the footage itself focused largely on close, body‑centred shots rather than the event it claimed to report. The page has uploaded several similar videos (1, 2, 3) featuring other women, following the same visual pattern.
Academics have also been targeted.
A Facebook page initially called News Bangla BD, and later renamed Binodon Bangla, posted at least 15 reels of Shehreen Amin Bhuiyan, an assistant professor at Dhaka University, during Pahela Baishakh celebrations. The videos contained unnecessary close‑ups and body‑focused framing (1,2,3,4).
Speaking to The Daily Star, she described the experience as deeply unsettling.
“They record videos without any consent, either from very close or by zooming in from a distance. They film from behind or from the side, thinking it will bring views and followers. It feels extremely uncomfortable,” she said.
In some cases, captions went beyond neutral descriptions, using suggestive lines that further objectified women captured in unguarded moments. Phrases such as “it is hard to fool the legend’s eyes” and “what did the beautiful actress do in front of everyone?” were used to frame the footage.
Audience responses frequently amplified the harm. A review of comment sections across multiple reels shows that many responses (1,2,3,4) are unfit for publication, with users posting sexually explicit remarks targeting women’s bodies and character rather than engaging with any reported context.
This pattern appeared consistently across most of the pages reviewed.
The Daily Star sent messages to six Facebook pages that present themselves as media outlets but received no response. The newspaper also called the administrators of three other pages. While two responded to queries, one did not answer phone calls despite repeated attempts.
One page called News Bangla BD listed a physical office address at “Hassan Plaza, 53 Karwan Bazar, Dhaka.” A visit to the location, however, found no organisation operating under that name.
When asked about the rationale behind repeatedly posting such reels, an administrator of Daily Biplobi Kantho, Tamim Nisad, acknowledged that the content was driven by audience growth rather than editorial judgment.
“The page is new, so we are posting more reels to increase our followers,” he told The Daily Star. “She [Keya Payel] is a popular actress, which is why more content featuring her has been shared.”
He said the page was not yet a registered media outlet but claimed that documents for registration were being prepared.
Media experts warn that these practices reflect a broader and more troubling shift.
Abdullah Al Mamun, a professor of Mass Communication and Journalism at Rajshahi University, said, “This is a highly negative development, and it has increased sharply in recent months,” he said. “What we are seeing is a systematic use of digital platforms to target individuals under the guise of media activity.”
According to Mamun, the phenomenon goes beyond isolated instances of unethical content. He said some actors appear to be using such material strategically to dominate digital spaces, suppress critical voices, and consolidate influence.
“Addressing this growing digital disorder requires proactive intervention,” he said, calling for more effective oversight and accountability mechanisms to curb abuse on digital platforms.
The pattern of content observed across these pages raises questions about the enforcement of Meta’s Community Standards on adult sexual exploitation.
The policy explicitly prohibits the sharing of “secretly taken non-commercial imagery” that focuses on “commonly sexualised body parts,” particularly when circulated to sexualise or draw attention to an individual.
Meta also outlines enforcement tools such as visibility limits, account restrictions, and monetisation controls. Yet the continued presence and circulation of such content point to weak enforcement of these rules, allowing prohibited materials to remain widely accessible on the platform.
Md Sayeed Al-Zaman, a digital media researcher at the News and Media Research Centre at the University of Canberra in Australia, said these shortcomings are especially evident in non-Western contexts.
“Enforcement of these policies in countries like Bangladesh appears inadequate, partly due to contextual ambiguity and limitations in local-language moderation,” he said.
He added that delayed and inconsistent responses to reported violations create “a safe harbour” for such actors.
“This allows harmful content to circulate widely, while accountability remains limited,” he noted.
