However, Twitter is allowing ads related to
social causes such as climate change, gun
control and abortion. People and groups
running such ads won’t be able to target
those ads down to a user’s ZIP code or use
political categories such as “conservative”
or “liberal.” Rather, targeting must be kept
broad, based on a user’s state or province,
for instance.
News organizations will be exempt so they can
promote stories that cover political issues. While
Twitter has issued guidelines for what counts as
a news organization — single-issue advocacy
outlets don’t qualify, for instance — it’s unclear
if this will be enough prevent partisan websites
from promoting political content.
Twitter announced its worldwide ban on
political ads Oct. 30, but didn’t release
details until last week. The policy, which
goes into effect this Friday, is in stark
contrast to Facebook’s approach of allowing
political ads, even if they contain false
information. Facebook has said it wants to
provide politicians with a “level playing
field” for communication and not intervene
when they speak, regardless of what
they’re saying.
Response to Twitter’s ban has been strong
and mixed, with critics questioning the
company’s ability to enforce the new policy
given its poor history banning hate speech
and abuse from its service. The company
acknowledges it will make mistakes but
says it’s better to start addressing the issue
now rather than wait until all the kinks are
worked out.