Twitter will be banning all political ads globally, starting November 22nd, according to tweets by Jack Dorsey, the microblogging platform’s CEO, on Wednesday.
The ban, according to Dorsey, comes on the back of the growing criticism over misinformation from politicians on social media.
He also explained reasons for the ban, saying that internet advertising portends “risks to politics” — though it is effective for commercial advertisers.
“We’ve made the decision to stop all political advertising on Twitter globally. We believe political message reach should be earned, not bought. Why? A few reasons,” he wrote in a flurry of tweets.
“While internet advertising is incredibly powerful and very effective for commercial advertisers, that power brings significant risks to politics.”
We’ve made the decision to stop all political advertising on Twitter globally. We believe political message reach should be earned, not bought. Why? A few reasons…🧵
— jack 🌍🌏🌎 (@jack) October 30, 2019
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A political message earns reach when people decide to follow an account or retweet. Paying for reach removes that decision, forcing highly optimized and targeted political messages on people. We believe this decision should not be compromised by money.
— jack 🌍🌏🌎 (@jack) October 30, 2019
While internet advertising is incredibly powerful and very effective for commercial advertisers, that power brings significant risks to politics, where it can be used to influence votes to affect the lives of millions.
— jack 🌍🌏🌎 (@jack) October 30, 2019
Dorsey said a full policy will be unveiled to the public on November 15.
“We’re well aware we‘re a small part of a much larger political advertising ecosystem. Some might argue our actions today could favor incumbents. But we have witnessed many social movements reach massive scale without any political advertising. I trust this will only grow,” he wrote.
We’re well aware we‘re a small part of a much larger political advertising ecosystem. Some might argue our actions today could favor incumbents. But we have witnessed many social movements reach massive scale without any political advertising. I trust this will only grow.
— jack 🌍🌏🌎 (@jack) October 30, 2019
According to the CEO of the microblogging platform, the decision was taken to head off potential problems from “machine learning-based optimization of messaging and micro-targeting, unchecked misleading information, and deep fakes.”
The company’s decision comes at about the same time when Facebook, its social media rival, ruled out a ban on political ads.
Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook founder, had premised his decision on the fact that a ban on political advertising would hand incumbent politicians control of the media.
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