What are Facebook's policies on political advertising?

Facebook has established policies governing political advertising on its platform to promote transparency, accountability, and integrity in political campaigns. Here are some key aspects of Facebook's policies on political advertising:

1. **Ad Transparency:** Facebook requires advertisers running political ads to comply with its ad transparency policies. This includes providing information about the entity funding the ad, such as the organization's name, address, and contact information. Political ads are labeled with a "Paid for by" disclaimer to disclose the advertiser's identity to users.

2. **Ad Authorization:** Advertisers running political ads on Facebook must undergo an authorization process to confirm their identity and location. This process involves providing identification documents and other verification steps to ensure compliance with Facebook's ad policies.

3. **Ad Archive:** Facebook maintains a public Ad Library, which serves as an archive of political ads running on the platform. The Ad Library allows users to view information about political ads, including who paid for them, how much was spent, and the demographic targeting criteria used.

4. **Ad Targeting Restrictions:** Facebook imposes restrictions on the targeting criteria that advertisers can use for political ads. Advertisers are prohibited from targeting users based on sensitive attributes such as race, ethnicity, religion, political affiliation, or sexual orientation in political ads.

5. **Verification and Monitoring:** Facebook verifies the identities of advertisers running political ads and monitors their compliance with ad policies. The platform employs automated systems and human review to detect and enforce violations of its ad policies, including those related to political advertising.

6. **Issue Ads:** In addition to traditional political ads, Facebook also applies its ad transparency and authorization requirements to "issue ads" that address national issues of public importance. Issue ads are subject to the same disclosure and verification requirements as political ads.

7. **Country-Specific Policies:** Facebook's political advertising policies may vary by country or region to comply with local laws and regulations. Advertisers are required to adhere to the specific guidelines and disclosure requirements applicable to political advertising in their respective jurisdictions.

8. **Enforcement and Accountability:** Facebook enforces its political advertising policies through a combination of automated systems, human review, and user reporting. Advertisers found to be in violation of these policies may face penalties, including account suspension or removal of ads.

Overall, Facebook's policies on political advertising aim to promote transparency, accountability, and fairness in political campaigns on the platform, while also protecting the integrity of the democratic process and the user experience. However, these policies continue to evolve in response to emerging challenges and feedback from users, policymakers, and civil society organizations.

Facebook has policies in place regarding political advertising on its platform. Here's an overview of Facebook's policies on political advertising:

1. **Ad Authorization and Transparency**: Facebook requires advertisers running political ads to complete an authorization process and disclose information about their identity and location. This includes providing identification documents and verifying their location before they can run political ads.

2. **Ad Library**: Facebook maintains an Ad Library, which is a publicly searchable database of all ads related to politics or issues of national importance that are running on the platform. The Ad Library provides transparency by allowing users to view information about political ads, including who paid for them, how much was spent, and the demographics of the audience reached.

3. **Verification of Advertisers**: Facebook verifies advertisers running political ads to ensure they are who they claim to be and comply with the platform's advertising policies. This verification process helps prevent foreign interference, misinformation, and deceptive advertising practices.

4. **Prohibited Content**: Facebook prohibits political ads that contain misleading, false, or deceptive content. This includes ads that make false claims about candidates, parties, or issues, as well as ads that use tactics intended to manipulate or deceive users.

5. **Targeting Restrictions**: Facebook imposes restrictions on the targeting of political ads to prevent discriminatory or exclusionary practices. Advertisers are not allowed to target political ads based on sensitive characteristics such as race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, or political affiliation.

6. **Disclaimer Requirements**: Facebook requires political advertisers to include disclaimers in their ads that clearly disclose who paid for the ad. This helps users understand the source of the ad and who is behind the messaging.

7. **Enforcement and Review**: Facebook enforces its political advertising policies through a combination of automated systems, human review, and user reporting. Advertisers found to be in violation of Facebook's policies may face penalties, including ad removal, account suspension, or other sanctions.

Overall, Facebook's policies on political advertising are designed to promote transparency, accountability, and integrity in the electoral process, while also safeguarding against misinformation, manipulation, and abuse of the platform for political gain.