Meta 2024 US Election Ads Guidelines Update: Advertisements Saying 2020 Election Was Rigged Now Allowed

Meta's 2024 U.S. election ads guidelines have been updated. The giant tech firm confirmed that it is now allowing advertisements about the 2020 election being rigged on Facebook and Instagram.

Although Meta now allows ads saying that past elections were stolen, the company will still prevent content questioning if ongoing or future U.S. elections are legitimate.

Here are other details about Meta's 2024 U.S. election ads guidelines update that American voters need to know.

Meta 2024 US Election Ads Guidelines Update

The Guardian reported that it isn't the first time Meta allowed ads claiming that previous U.S. elections were rigged.

For example, in August, Donald Trump was able to post a Facebook advertisement, in which he said that the 2020 election was stolen from him.

"We won in 2016. We had a rigged election in 2020 but got more votes than any sitting president," said the former American ruler.

In 2022, the social media giant firm also allegedly implemented the policy "quietly" after the U.S. midterm primary elections. Not announcing the new rule prevented Republican candidates from running ads claiming that the 2020 election was stolen from Donald Trump.

However, the announcement of Meta raises concerns since election advertisements are now easier to create and mass-produce.

"Today you can create hundreds of pieces of content in the snap of a finger and you can flood the zone," explained Tech for Campaigns Chief Executive Gina Pak.

Another issue here is that Meta already terminated 21,000 of its employees, who were mostly working on election policies.

Recent Meta Election Ad Guideline Changes

The Associated Press recently reported that Meta also made another adjustment to its 2024 U.S. election ad guidelines. The update focuses on requiring more transparency from advertisers who use artificial intelligence.

Under the new Meta policy, AI-generated ads are required to disclose that they used AI tools to create their content. The message should appear whenever users click on the ads.

This decision came as Meta and other American tech firms are being criticized for not taking enough safety measures to protect online consumers from AI-generated content, especially election advertisements.

Since the U.S. 2024 election is just a few months away from happening, Meta and other social media companies are expected to release more election ad guidelines.