Facebook wants 'flexibility' in political advertising regulations

Facebook says that it supports the government’s push to further regulate election ads on digital platforms, but qualifies that it wants flexible rules.The company explained in comments it sent to the Federal Election Commission (FEC) that new regulations should give “advertisers flexibility to meet their disclaimer obligations in innovative ways that take full advantage of the technological advance.” The firm explained that by “technological advances,” it means instead of firm rules requiring specific text to show up on political ads on its platform, Facebook would instead like to see a provision that allows the company the freedom in how it shows users who is buying ads. “For example, allowing ads to include an icon or other obvious indicator that more information about an ad is available via quick navigation (like a single click) would give clear guidance on how to include disclaimers in new technologies as they are developed,” Facebook offered as a potential solution. The social media giant’s proposal, if taken up by the FEC, would allow Facebook to meet transparency requirements but still control the design and appearance of how ads are displayed on its website.