Facebook Lifts Political Ad Ban

Morning, Lucinda Southern here, Adweek media editor. 

Facebook has lifted its ban on political ads but only in Georgia. Per David Cohen’s reporting:

“Ads that target locations outside of Georgia or that are not relevant to the elections will be rejected for violating Facebook’s ad policies.”

There were problems with the ad ban that Facebook instated during the election: Candidates in Georgia lost out on millions in potential fundraising, it disproportionately impacted communities of color while simultaneously ignored disinformation on the platform.

This time, it seems that experts and advertisers forced Facebook’s hand. 

Staying on the platform, you’ll remember Facebook’s fast-loading Instant Articles format that has somewhat faded into the background since its 2015 launch? Well, Facebook shared the welcome news that in 2020, IA has been delivering on the goods. 

The top 100 publishers using Instant Articles in Canada and the U.S. saw revenue per thousand article reads grow 48% year-over-year, according to David Cohen’s piece. Perhaps a more valuable mark of its utility, The Atlantic sold nearly 8,000 subscriptions in four months via IA.

Facebook stopped short at explaining the reasons behind the hikes, whether product developments or increased demand were at play. High profile publishers like The Guardian and New York Times withdrew from the format in 2017 because lousy fill rate and platform-publisher dynamics meant larger organizations could monetize higher on their own mobile pages. 

Facebook let IA wither when it focused bets on video a few years ago, but the renewed shot in the arm is paying off: Over 5,700 new publishers joined or rejoined the 50,000-plus pages using Instant Articles, including The Daily Dot, Reuters and Salon. 

Clearly, publishers aren’t monolithic, their relationships with platforms flex depending on fortunes and strategy. If you have strong views on the subject, let me know! Get in touch at [email protected].

With that, please consider taking out an Adweek Pro Subscription, gain access to all our coverage and support our journalism.  

Thanks for reading! Lucinda

Over 5,700 new publishers joined or rejoined the 50,000-plus pages using Instant Articles.

Allegations of campaign manipulation surface as data practices increasingly come under the spotlight.

Pew Research Center found that 78% of GOP respondents disapproved of decisions to block or flag posts.

Ties to the Internet Research Agency were found in investigating the latter two.