by Twitter announced on Tuesday that it would be expanding the types of political ads allowed on its platform, reversing its global ban on political ads from 2019. The company also stated that it would relax its advertising policy for “cause-based” ads in the United States, aligning its advertising policy more closely with that of traditional media outlets such as TV.
In 2019, Twitter, along with other social media companies like Facebook, faced criticism for allowing misinformation to spread during elections. As a result, Twitter banned political ads and restricted ads related to social causes. At the time, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey tweeted, “We believe political message reach should be earned, not bought.”
However, since Elon Musk took over as CEO of Twitter in late October, corporate advertisers have reportedly been fleeing the platform. This is likely due to Musk’s deep cost-cutting measures, including layoffs and the temporary suspension of several journalists’ accounts, as well as the restoration of former US President Donald Trump’s account after it had been permanently suspended.
In response to these changes, some have expressed concerns about the future of the platform. Musk has stated that Twitter was facing a “negative cash flow” of $3 billion next year, and has implemented several drastic measures in an effort to improve the company’s financial standing.
