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Google, Meta and Microsoft to stop showing political ads in the EU

politico.eu

71–80 of 202 posts

Re: Google, Meta and Microsoft to stop showing political ads in the EU

#71
post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How is this bad? I welcome the decision and the outcome. It is beyond crazy what some groups are doing with the misinformation and outright lies on the platforms. Ad companies just want to rake the money with the least effort. They have shown over the years they are not willing to improve the outcomes.

> How is this bad? I welcome the decision and the outcome. I do not welcome it, as I am on the populists' side. Decisions like this one are effectively putting our political (non-violent, just to make sure on that) action outside the law, so in effect what do you think the next steps from my side of the isle will be? Acquiescence in practically being silenced out by the current powers that be? I think that that will…

Fewer ads is always great.

Not everyone wants to be molested by ads. I for instance don't. I think ads should be forbidden.

Re: Google, Meta and Microsoft to stop showing political ads in the EU

#72
post #2

Ignoring political implications here and just on a personal level I wish political ads were banned. Quite possibly my least favorite type of ad to see and I've never felt meaningfully informed by them (generally quite the opposite).

Commercial ads are also designed to manipulate you emotionally or otherwise present you with information that induces a desire to buy what you otherwise didn't need.

At least the worst thing that comes out of that is losing money. With political ads, you lose a country.

Re: Google, Meta and Microsoft to stop showing political ads in the EU

#74
post #2

Ignoring political implications here and just on a personal level I wish political ads were banned. Quite possibly my least favorite type of ad to see and I've never felt meaningfully informed by them (generally quite the opposite).

> generally quite the opposite Very much this. These ads make me very much not want to vote for the candidate which is the opposite of what they wanted.

The advertising industry keeps repeatedly finding that no matter how much you think an ad turned you off a product, you're still more likely to buy that product after seeing the ad, and the more times you see the ad, the more likely you are to buy it. No matter how the ad made you feel.

Re: Google, Meta and Microsoft to stop showing political ads in the EU

#75
post #47
post #41

It is messed up in the US that a political party basically wins because they spend more money in ads and utilize ads more intelligently. I mean things like this: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/nov/04/election-mus... > A political action committee (Pac) linked to Elon Musk is accused of targeting Jewish and Arab American voters in swing states with dramatically different messages about Kamala Harris’s positi…

Democrats outspent Trump in 2020, 2024 and 2016 https://www.npr.org/2024/11/01/nx-s1-5173712/2024-election-a... https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/10/21/us/elections/...

Trump received the equivalent of two billion dollars in free media coverage in 2016.

https://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/16/upshot/measuring-donald-t...

Elon Musk spent $44 billion dollars to buy Twitter and then prioritized right wing pro Trump messaging in 2024.

https://www.npr.org/2024/10/22/nx-s1-5156184/elon-musk-trump...

Re: Google, Meta and Microsoft to stop showing political ads in the EU

#76
post #18

As a EU citizen, I don't care? People are not swayed by political ads. They're swayed by influencers who push political agendas covertly.

Ads influence people a lot. In particular the elderly generation.

And the younger generation are influenced by influencers, which are also ads.

Re: Google, Meta and Microsoft to stop showing political ads in the EU

#77
post #49
post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Campaigners say the law will cause a harmful loss of information I find this quote from the article amusing. If EU political ads are anything like USA political ads, the objective of the ad is rarely, if ever, to educate the audience. The objective of most political ads is to confuse, disorient, and distort the narrative.

I don't think the political ads are like in the US. Not at all. Also the scale is no where near. TV2 in Denmark just ran an article saying that the 24 politicians and parties buying the most ads bought a total of 250k ads ahead of this policy coming into effect. Note that same month last year the spend was ~1/3. I know Denmark is small, ~5-6M, but that's doesn't seem like a lot of money.

The amount of money in US politics and elections in particular is staggering when you think about it. In 15 weeks Kamala Harris' campaign spent $1.5 billion. That's just insane. Especially when you find out that a lot of that spend goes through "media consultancies" and PR firms...run by former DNC staffers. And the same is true for the RNC. The two parties are basically a giant revolving door and network of jobs with access to this enormous slush fund.

Re: Google, Meta and Microsoft to stop showing political ads in the EU

#78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> But how would you define what's advertising and what's not? The same way we define what is and isn't political advertising? Or tobacco advertising, alcohol advertising etc. > But, is the SEO I do advertising? No, it's SEO. > What about when I share my work to my socials, is that advertising? Post a reel No, this is just sharing your work. > Likewise with product placement in films, influencer marketing, etc. Is it…

Sure, but in reality those reuglations either aren't equally enforced, or companies have always found ways around it. I could even argue that SEO should be considered a form of advertising as the intent of SEO is at the end of the day consumer manipulation. Even with the tobacco advertising ban, tobacco use in movies is still a problem and even if not one specific product, it still encourages smoking and has a real w…

It seems quite simple to me. Are you paying for that? Or providing any benefit equivalent to a payment? Then it's an ad.

Re: Google, Meta and Microsoft to stop showing political ads in the EU

#79
post #74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> generally quite the opposite Very much this. These ads make me very much not want to vote for the candidate which is the opposite of what they wanted.

The advertising industry keeps repeatedly finding that no matter how much you think an ad turned you off a product, you're still more likely to buy that product after seeing the ad, and the more times you see the ad, the more likely you are to buy it. No matter how the ad made you feel.

It's amazing how an industry can conduct research that provides them with the exact answer they want

Re: Google, Meta and Microsoft to stop showing political ads in the EU

#80
post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sounds like a good way to trap everyone with incumbent corporations. No quitting your corporate job to start your own business, you’re not allowed to advertise.

There could be an index where you list your product/service, so people can find your stuff when they need it. But yeah will be harder to manipulate people to buy your miracle supplement or other garbage that is 99% of the current ads I see. I do not watch Tv, use ad blockers so after years of not watching TV I watched a bit recently and most ads are supplements/"naturists medicine" and for some reasons on youtube wit…

> There could be an index where you list your product/service, so people can find your stuff when they need it.

There is already one, it's called a search engine.

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