Social media company X (formerly Twitter) has announced that it will allow candidates and political parties in the United States to post political advertisements on its platform and plans to enhance its security and electoral team management before the 2024 presidential election.
Before being acquired by billionaire Elon Musk, Twitter had banned all political advertisements globally since 2019. In January of this year, Twitter lifted this ban and began allowing event-themed paid content to be published on the platform to raise awareness about voter registration. Simultaneously, the company plans to expand the types of political advertisements allowed on the platform.
Considering that many advertisers are withdrawing or reducing spending due to concerns over inappropriate content, X's decision to allow political advertisements will help increase company revenue. The company will continue to expand its departments and teams to address content manipulation and the challenges of "emerging threats."
X also plans to establish a global advertisement transparency center, where users can view political advertisements being promoted on the X platform at any time. The company emphasizes that it will continue to strictly prohibit the dissemination of false information or political advertisements that attempt to undermine public confidence in elections.
Similar to other social media companies, this platform has long faced sharp criticism from researchers and legislators for not taking sufficient measures during election periods to stop the spread of misleading or false content.
Since Musk's acquisition, X company has laid off thousands of employees, including those who worked in the trust and safety group, raising significant concerns about its ability to handle election advertisements in the U.S. presidential election.
