'Social Media' The New Battlefield of Politics
"Social Media" is an important communication channel and source of news, especially with the upcoming U.S. presidential election in November 2020. This has turned social media into a political battlefield where people are bombarded with information, prompting platforms to find ways to combat misinformation.
Today, social media serves as a channel for people to receive news and respond immediately. With the rising popularity of this medium, everyone is flocking to these platforms, especially during election periods, leading to instances of information overload regarding politics.
The Pew Research Center conducted a survey of adults in the U.S. from July 13-19, revealing that with just over two months until the presidential election, many social media users are feeling fatigued by the overwhelming amount of political content.
The proportion of people feeling exhausted by opposing political posts is steadily increasing, particularly among Republican party members.
About 55% of adult users reported feeling drained by the numerous political posts and debates on social media.
This figure has risen by 18% since the initial survey conducted in the summer before the 2016 presidential election, where the figure was only 9% the previous year.
Meanwhile, users are now less hesitant when encountering political posts. Currently, 29% of social media users say they no longer feel indecisive when seeing opposing political discussions. This number has decreased from around 40% in 2016 and 2018. In every survey, including the latest one, those who expressed a desire for more political posts on social media account for only a small percentage, around 15%-20%.
As this year marks the U.S. election year, online platforms like Facebook and Google's Alphabet Inc. have faced significant pressure since last year.
Reuters reports that in the U.S., there are communication laws preventing television stations that accept advertising money from federal election candidates from refusing or censoring those ads. However, this law does not apply to cable television stations like CNN and social media, where leading candidates are pouring millions into targeting voters for the November elections.
Social media must also find ways to handle misinformation and false claims in political advertising, as compiled by Reuters:
Facebook has a fact-checking program from third-party partners but allows politicians to run ads with false claims. This policy has been criticized by oversight boards and members of Congress for potentially spreading misleading information, causing voters to receive incorrect information.
Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook, defended the company's stance, stating they do not want to limit political speech but are considering improving their policies.
Facebook conducts fact-checking on political content and verifies facts from politicians who have previously shared proven false information, prohibiting such content from appearing in ads.
Recently, Facebook announced changes to some political advertising policies, including allowing users to disable certain targeted advertising tools and increasing transparency regarding ad audiences.
The expansion of audience information features began in Q1, and Facebook plans to start regulating political ads in the U.S. during the summer (June-August) and gradually expand to other regions.
Moreover, Facebook allows users to opt-out of seeing ads based on the target audience set by advertisers, extending this option to all types of ads, not just political ones.
Twitter Inc. has banned political advertising since November 2019, including ads referencing candidates, political parties, elections, or legislation. It does not allow ads intended for specific political or social groups.
"We believe access to political messaging should be earned, not bought," said Jack Dorsey, CEO of Twitter. Many members of Congress praised Twitter's decision, but critics argue that this benefits incumbents while disadvantaging lesser-known candidates.
Officials from Trump's campaign, which spent more on ads on Facebook and Google than the Democratic party, called this ban "ridiculous" and stated it had little impact on Trump's campaign strategy.
Ned Segal, CFO of Twitter, noted that during the 2018 midterm elections, total political advertising on Twitter amounted to less than $3 million.
Steve Passwaiter, Vice President of Campaign Media Analysis at Kantar Media, stated that from an advertising perspective, Twitter is not a major player, with Facebook and Google being the giants in political advertising.
Google announced it would limit the audience for election ads based on age, gender, and location by postal code. This change means that political advertisers can no longer target audiences using data such as voting history and political leanings (e.g., right-leaning, left-leaning, or independent). However, advertisers may define target audiences based on context, such as showing ads to viewers of specific videos.
Google and YouTube prohibit misleading presentations in ads, such as false information about voting processes, the age or birthplace of candidates, or false claims about public figures being deceased.
However, Google does not ban all ads from politicians with false claims. In October 2019, Joe Biden's campaign requested Google to remove a Trump ad containing false content, but a Google spokesperson told Reuters that the ad did not violate company policy.
- TikTok
The popular Chinese video app among American teenagers does not allow political advertising on its platform.
TikTok stated in October 2019 that the company wants to ensure that TikTok continues to create a humorous and satirical atmosphere.
Blake Chandlee, TikTok's Vice President of Global Business, wrote in a blog, "The nature of political advertising may not fit the TikTok experience."
TikTok is owned by ByteDance, a major Chinese technology company based in Beijing, which has faced heavy scrutiny from the U.S. over concerns about user data privacy.
Microsoft's LinkedIn does not allow political advertising, defining political ads as "ads dedicated to or against a specific candidate or electoral position, or intended to influence the outcome of an election."
The search engine Bing, also owned by Microsoft, does not permit ads related to politics or elections.
SOURCE : www.bangkokbiznews.com
