Source:
https://scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3016731/facebook-will-ban-adverts-tell-people-us-not-vote United States & Canada
Facebook will ban adverts that tell people in the US not to vote in 2020 presidential election
- Company says the new ‘don’t vote’ policy is in its developmental stages and it is seeking advice from voting organisations
A voter casts their ballot at a library in Lake View Terrace, Los Angeles, California in November 2018. Photo: AFP
Facebook says it will ban ads that discourage people from voting before the 2020 US presidential election, according to its second annual Civil Rights Audit published on Sunday.
The company pledged to put its new “don’t vote” policy prohibition into effect in autumn, before the 2019 US elections on November 5, Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg said in a blog post announcing the report.
Last year, Facebook expanded its policies against voter suppression by banning posts that spread misinformation on voting methods, election dates and times, and polling locations. Those rules included banning intimidation tactics such as misrepresentations on whether votes will be counted.
The new “don’t vote” policy is in its developmental stages and the company is seeking advice from voting organisations.
Facebook said the policy is likely to only apply in the United States in its initial release and will not include the policing of organic posts from users.
Facebook said it tries to remove malicious election-related content. The company is now including “do not vote” ads in its efforts to ward off coordinated attempts to influence elections.
The social media giant has been used to spread misinformation about previous elections.
US intelligence agencies claim there was an extensive Russian cyber-influence operation during the 2016 campaign aimed at helping President Donald Trump get elected. Russia has repeatedly denied the allegations.
A Facebook logo at a conference in San Jose in April 2019. Photo: Reuters
“We focused on ads because there is a targeted component in them,” Facebook Public Policy Director Neil Potts said. “We recognise it as a political tactic, which is much more in line with voter suppression.”
Ads telling people to “boycott the election” disproportionately targeted African American Facebook users, according to Ian Vandewalker, senior council at the Brennan Centre for Justice.
The world’s biggest social network also pledged to introduce a new misinformation policy in the fall ahead of the 2020 US census, prohibiting misrepresentations of census requirements or methods, it said.
Facebook began conducting the annual Civil Rights Audit in 2018 to address concerns from under-represented communities and advocacy groups on its platform.
The company has come under scrutiny for its hands-off approach to content posted on its platform. It does not ban most forms of misinformation, instead posting warnings downgrading misleading material so it reaches fewer people.
Facebook set up a department in October 2018 to combat misinformation campaigns during the US midterm elections. Similar departments were set up this year in Brazil, India and Europe before elections.