Beautiful Virgin Islands

Tuesday, Jun 24, 2025

Facebook should not be 'the arbiter of truth' in political ads, says former FEC chairman

Facebook should not be 'the arbiter of truth' in political ads, says former FEC chairman

Facebook's "stated policy is fair" when it comes to political ads, says Lee Goodman, a Republican who led the FEC under Obama.

Facebook should not be tasked with determining the truthfulness of political campaign ads, says a former chairman of the Federal Election Commission.

Lee Goodman -a Republican who led the FEC during Barack Obama’s presidency, says Facebook’s “stated policy is fair” when it comes to political ads.

Facebook is avoiding refereeing “truth or falsity, opinion versus fact, candidate versus candidate debates” by taking a hands-off approach, says Goodman.

Facebook should not be tasked with determining the truthfulness of political campaign ads, a former chairman of the Federal Election Commission told CNBC on Thursday.

Lee Goodman -a Republican who led the FEC during Barack Obama’s presidency — was reacting to the social network’s decision to reject a Biden campaign request to remove an advertisement from President Donald Trump’s campaign containing unproven information. Other tech companies like Twitter and Google’s YouTube were running the Trump ad. CNN refused to run it.

The Trump ad claims that former Vice President Joe Biden “offered Ukraine $1 billion to fire the prosecutor investigating a company affiliated with his son.” The Biden campaign said the claim should be covered by Facebook’s pledge to reject political ads with “previously debunked content.” Trump’s July phone call asking Ukraine’s president to investigate the Bidens is central to the impeachment inquiry launched by House Democrats.

Facebook, like all publishers, has to have reasonable editorial standards,” Goodman said on “Squawk Box.” “What we’re seeing here is an exercise of their editorial freedom to feature candidate ads without fact-checking and allow the political process to be the arbiter of truth and falsity in political advertising by the candidates themselves.”

The global elections policy chief at Facebook wrote a letter to Biden’s campaign, which was originally obtained by The New York Times. The letter said the social network’s approach to political ads is “grounded in Facebook’s fundamental belief in free expression, respect for the democratic process, and the belief that, in mature democracies with a free press, political speech is already arguably the most scrutinized speech there is.Thus, when a politician speaks or makes an ad, we do not send it to third party fact checkers.”

Facebook will be “condemned” either way, Goodman said, even though the company “doesn’t want to be the arbiter and doesn’t want to take sides in these political debates.”

“Their stated policy, I think, is fair,” Goodman said, adding Facebook is avoiding refereeing “truth or falsity, opinion versus fact, candidate versus candidate debates” by taking a hands-off approach.

Facebook which declined to comment after the letter surfaced  has worked to improve its advertising disclosures after government officials concluded Russians used the platform to influence the 2016 election. In late August, the company tightened its verification process that requires people who want to run ads to prove they are in the U.S., and to confirm their group’s identity through a tax identification number or a government ID.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Germany and Italy Under Pressure to Repatriate $245bn of Gold from US Vaults
Airlines Evaluate Flight Cancellations Amid Escalating US-Iran Tensions
Starmer Invites Innovators to Join Government Talent Scheme
UK Economy’s Strong Opening Quarter Shows Signs of Cooling
Harrods Seeks Court Order to Secure Al Fayed Estate for Victims
BA and Singapore Airlines Cancel Dubai Flights Amid Middle East Tensions
Trump Faces Backlash from MAGA Base Over Iran Strikes
Meta Bets $14 B on Alexandr Wang to Drive AI Ambitions
WATCH: Israeli forces show the aftermath of a massive airstrike at Iran's Isfahan nuclear site
FedEx Founder Fred Smith, ‘Heart and Soul’ of the Company, Dies at 80
Chinese Factories Shift Away from U.S. Amid Trump‑Era Tariffs
Pimco Seizes Opportunity in Japan’s Dislocated Bond Market
Labubu Doll Drives Pop Mart to Status as China’s Most Valuable Toy Maker
Global Coal Demand Defies Paris Accord Goals
We have new information and breaking details to share about what is shaping up to be a historic air campaign tonight
Six Massive Bombs Dropped on Fordow; Trump: 'A Historic Moment for the U.S., Israel, and the World'
Fordow: Deeply Buried Iranian Enrichment Site in U.S.–Israel Crosshairs
United States Conducts Precision Strikes on Iran’s Nuclear Sites
US strikes Iran nuclear sites, Trump says
Pakistan to nominate Trump for Nobel Peace Prize.
BBC Demands Perplexity AI Immediately Stop Using Its Content
Telegram Founder: I Will Leave My Fortune to Over 100 of My Children
Political Turmoil Resurfaces in Belgium Amid Economic Concerns
Fed policymakers divided on timing of interest rate cuts
Trump signals imminent agreement with Harvard University
Inheritance tax referendum alarms Swiss billionaire community
Japan cancels bilateral security meeting amid US defence demands
AI skeptic Emily Bender warns that ‘the emperor has no clothes’
Israel Confirms Assassination of Quds Force Commander in Tehran
16 Billion Login Credentials Leaked in Unprecedented Cybersecurity Breach
Senate hearing on who was 'really running' Biden White House kicks off
Iranian Military Officers Reportedly Seek Contact with Reza Pahlavi, Signal Intent to Defect
FBI and Senate Investigate Allegations of Chinese Plot to Influence the 2020 Election in Biden’s Favor Using Fake U.S. Driver’s Licenses
Vietnam Emerges as Luxury Yacht Destination for Ultra‑Rich
Plans to Sell Dutch Embassy in Bangkok Face Local Opposition
China's Iranian Oil Imports Face Disruption Amid Escalating Middle East Tensions
Trump's $5 Million 'Trump Card' Visa Program Draws Nearly 70,000 Applicants
DGCA Finds No Major Safety Concerns in Air India's Boeing 787 Fleet
Airlines Reroute Flights Amid Expanding Middle East Conflict Zones
Elon Musk's xAI Seeks $9.3 Billion in Funding Amid AI Expansion
Trump Demands Iran's Unconditional Surrender Amid Escalating Conflict
Israeli Airstrike Targets Iranian State TV in Central Tehran
President Trump is leaving the G7 summit early and has ordered the National Security Council to the Situation Room
Taiwan Imposes Export Ban on Chips to Huawei and SMIC
Israel has just announced plans to strike Tehran again, and in response, Trump has urged people to evacuate
Netanyahu Signals Potential Regime Change in Iran
Juncker Criticizes EU Inaction on Trump Tariffs
EU Proposes Ban on New Russian Gas Contracts
Analysts Warn Iran May Resort to Unconventional Warfare
Iranian Regime Faces Existential Threat Amid Conflict
×