Facebook allows users to block political ads

SAN FRANCISCO: Facebook is allowing users to turn off all political ads in a move aimed at quelling criticism of the social network’s approach to election misinformation.

The feature being rolled out in the United States and some other countries will give Facebook and Instagram users the option of blocking paid ads from candidates and political groups.

The initiative comes amid intense pressure on Facebook and other social media services to stem the flow of false information while remaining open platforms for political debate.

Facebook has rejected calls to fact check politicians including a plea from presidential candidate Joe Biden to clamp down on rampant disinformation from President Donald Trump.

READ MORE: Facebook fires employee protesting inaction on Trump posts

Facebook vice president of product management and social impact Naomi Gleit said the initiative expands on the social network’s ad preferences options which already allowed users to see fewer political ads.

She said the feature was being made available as part of our preparations for the 2020 elections and would be offered in countries with enforcements on ads about social issues, elections and politics.

Facebook also announced to launch what it called “the largest voting information effort in US history” with an election hub and a goal of registering four million voters.

“We’re encouraging people to vote,” Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg wrote in a US daily. “I believe Facebook has a responsibility not just to prevent voter suppression — which disproportionately targets people of colour but also to actively support well-informed voter engagement, registration and turnout.”

READ MORE: Biden calls on Facebook to change political speech rules

Facebook appeared to address concerns that it allowed misinformation and foreign influence campaigns to target voters in the 2016 US election aimed at discouraging voters or giving them inaccurate information.

Zuckerberg reiterated Facebook’s policy which generally exempts politicians from fact-checking. “Ultimately, I believe the best way to hold politicians accountable is through voting, and I believe we should trust voters to make judgments for themselves” he said.

At the same time, he added that they have rules against speech that cause imminent physical harm or suppress voting and no one is exempt from them.