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31-08-2023
WASHINGTON: X, formerly known as Twitter, has reversed its stance on political advertising, permitting its return to the platform.
The decision holds significance as it coincides with the commencement of the 2024 presidential election season in the United States. However, X’s priority remains deterring the spread of false information even as it allows political ads.
In a recent blog post, the platform elucidated its strategy for navigating political discourse in the lead-up to the election. The change is expected to provide political candidates with a fresh means of reaching voters online while bolstering X’s revenues which have been facing a decline.
The shift follows X’s earlier relaxation of restrictions on “cause-based advertising.” This policy shift now appears to enable election campaigns and political factions to disseminate ads endorsing or opposing specific candidates. This stands in contrast to Twitter’s move in 2019 when it banned political ads, a restriction that held throughout the 2020 US presidential election.
While X’s leadership, under the guidance of Elon Musk, champions the principle of free speech, there have been questions concerning the platform’s ability to effectively regulate content. The company has outlined plans to implement rigorous screening procedures to ensure only eligible entities can advertise. Furthermore, X is expanding 
its safety and election teams to vigilantly monitor emerging threats, including potential risks linked to AI-generated visuals.
On Tuesday, X said it will implement “robust screening processes to ensure only eligible groups and campaigns are able to advertise”. It did not elaborate on who would or would not be able to run political ads.
The company also said it was expanding its safety and election teams and “closely monitoring the platform for emerging threats”, likely referring to artificial intelligence-generated images.
Musk, a self-described free-speech absolutist, has drastically slashed X’s workforce since taking over the platform, raising concerns about the company’s ability to moderate content.
Conservatives have long decried what they view as social media companies’ heavy-handed approach to policing information. (Int’l Monitoring Desk)
