Senators cross the aisle in attempt to regulate online political advertising
A bipartisan group of US senators introduced the Honest Ads Act, a bill that attempts to protect against foreign interference in elections. Introduced by Sens. Klobuchar (D-MN), Warner (D-VA), and McCain (R-AZ) the bill is the first step toward regulating online political media, affecting companies like Facebook.
The legislation would require companies like Facebook and Google, which offer advertising services through their platforms, to retain and make available for public inspection the political ads they sell. It would apply to any platform with more than 50 million monthly users or anyone who spends more than $500 per year on Internet ads.
“It goes a long way,” Alex Howard, deputy director of the Sunlight Foundation, wrote in a blog post. “Opacity by design is not an acceptable status quo for the technology giants that shape public knowledge and discourse with limited accountability. We’re excited to see bipartisan support for more transparency and accountability online.”
Links:
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