Twitter to allow political ads back on its platform
MashableJan 04, 2023
After Twitter banned political ads in 2019 under former CEO and co-founder Jack Dorsey's belief that such messages should be "earned" and not "bought," the company's new owner, Elon Musk, announced on Tuesday that it would be relaxing such policies to boost revenue.
The new policy will include an overturning of the previous ban on cause-based ads — ads that encourage action related to issues such as the environment or social equality — in the US, though the company provided no details beyond saying the ads should be geo-restricted.
Musk's practice of reckless trial and error is why the company is running dry financially. After firing the majority of its staff and reinstating far-right conspiracy theorists, advertisers were rightfully scared away from the platform. Instead of acknowledging these poor business decisions, Musk has instead decided to retain his erroneous policies as he continues his pursuit of staying afloat.
Beyond simply growing its revenue, this policy change will give conservatives even more of a voice on social media. After already opening up previously-censored free thought surrounding COVID, disenfranchised political candidates and advocates will now be able to amplify their messages at a time when corporate-government censorship is being brought to light.