How Instagram and Twitter HID #CaitlynJenner during the ESPYs

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Social media filled with hate for Caitlyn Jenner after the ESPYs this week
Instagram and Twitter censored the hash tag so only positive posts show
Both sites have bolstered their safety teams in recent months

Published: 16:04 EST, 17 July 2015 | Updated: 17:19 EST, 17 July 2015

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Instagram and Twitter have hidden the hash tag 'CaitlynJenner' to conceal hateful and abusive comments as the former Olympian received her ESPY award on Tuesday.

Users who type #CaitlynJenner into the search bar of either site now will be met with a stream of positive messages in the 'most recent' column.

It is a good-hearted sample of millions of comments - many transphobic, aggressive, and threatening.

Before the block was enforced on Tuesday night, both social media sites were flooded with statements such as, 'How is this THING rewarded anything,' and 'F***ing f****t'.

Protected: While Caitlyn Jenner spoke at the ESPYs on Tuesday, tweets and Instagram posts were censored

Censored: Twitter and Instagram safety employees worked throughout Tuesday night and all this week to hide aggressive and abusive tweets like this from appearing in the 'most recent' feed of their sites

Instagram said the team will continue to monitor the hash tag to make sure abuse is kept under control

Instagram spokesman Gabe Madway told Daily Mail Online: 'Content that appears in the Most Recent section of trending hashtags can be abused because the photos that appear in that section are highly visible.

'To address this kind of abuse, we may restrict the visibility of the content that appears under a hashtag. We review this section regularly and content can then re-appear - so people may see different content in that section within a short period of time.'

Twitter has tripled its number of 'safety employees' in recent months, and expanded its definition of violent threats in April.

The block came into force during Caitlyn's 10-minute acceptance speech, in which she issued an appeal for compassion on behalf of trans youth.

Millions tuned in to watch the ceremony, and afterward social media was flooded with positive comments.

However, it did not take long for cynical tweets to appear questioning why she had been chosen for the award above other potential honorees.

Tweets complained that ESPN had chosen Jenner simply for publicity reasons, while others implied that money was involved.

An outcry erupted when late teenage basketball player Lauren Hill, was passed over for the award.

Hill achieved her goal of playing college basketball while battling an inoperable brain tumor and raising money for cancer research.

It did not take long for cynical tweets to appear questioning why she had been chosen for the courage award

Thanks to updated abuse policy, Instagram now has the remit to hide posts like this from 'most recent'

The ESPYs announced a special tribute to Hill on Tuesday saying that it had been planned all along.

Jenner's detractors included Hollywood director Peter Berg.

The 51-year-old creator of Friday Night Lights took to his Instagram to share a meme featuring a side-by-side comparison picture of the reality star and an amputee soldier with two artificial legs.

The caption included on the image was certainly controversial as it began: 'One Man traded 2 legs for the freedom of the other to trade 2 balls for 2 boobs.'

Berg later backtracked from his offensive posting, tweeting the following day: 'I have the utmost respect for Caitlyn Jenner and I am a strong supporter of equality and the rights of trans people everywhere.'

By way of comment about the block, Twitter spokesman Nu Wexler referred Daily Mail Online to an interview with Vijaya Gadde in the Washington Post in April.

She said: 'We have seen this type of behavior time and time again, including during GamerGate and other incidents involving both public figures and other individuals, so we are changing our approach to this problem, in some ways that won’t be readily apparent and in others that will be.

'In addition to improving users’ ability to control their own Twitter experiences, in recent months we have invested heavily in tools and enforcement solutions that enable us to better detect, act on and limit the reach of abusive content.'