Google to Resume Political Advertisements in US, Easing Ban Imposed Last Month Over Capitol Violence

"We will continue to rigorously enforce our advertisements policies, which strictly prohibit demonstrably false information,” Google said.

By Gadgets 360 Staff With Inputs From AFP | Updated: 23 February 2021 10:48 IST

Google to Resume Political Advertisements in US, Easing Ban Imposed Last Month Over Capitol Violence

Highlights

Google had been employing limited version of its "Sensitive Event" policy
The move made no exceptions for news organisations
On December 10, Google lifted a ban on election-related advertisements

Google said Monday it would lift its ban on political advertisements on its platform imposed last month following the turmoil surrounding the violent uprising at the US Capitol.

A Google statement to AFP said the Internet giant would from Wednesday lift the ban which was ordered to comply with its "sensitive events" policy.

"We will continue to rigorously enforce our advertisements policies, which strictly prohibit demonstrably false information that could significantly undermine trust in elections or the democratic process," the statement said.

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The prohibition ordered January 13 notably blocked any advertisements which sought to undermine the credibility of the US presidential election ahead of Joe Biden's inauguration. In an email, Google said the action was taken "following the unprecedented events of the past week and ahead of the upcoming presidential inauguration."

The Internet giant said at the time it was pausing all political advertisements along with advertisements referencing impeachment, President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration or protests in Washington because they could be used "to exploit the event or amplify misleading information."

The move made no exceptions for news organisations or merchandisers running advertisements.

On December 10, Google had lifted a temporary ban on election-related advertisements, which took effect after polls closed in the November US presidential election and aimed to curb misinformation and other abuses on its platforms.

Facebook also paused political advertisements after the November 3 election, only briefly unfreezing advertisements around the US Senate election in Georgia earlier this month.

A Google spokeswoman said the company had been employing a limited version of its "Sensitive Event" policy since the January 6 storming of the US Capitol by supporters of President Donald Trump, which meant it did not allow advertisements referencing the political violence at the Capitol.

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