October 29, 2024
How can you tell if your favorite influencer on social media is being paid to post videos about a certain political candidate or issue? Seems like important information you’d want to know ahead of the election. Right?
Well, you can’t officially know and that’s because there is absolutely no federal law or regulation that requires content creators to disclose when they’re being paid by a political action committee, political party or political organization for the political content they create. There may be some state laws – but those are few and far between.
Each social media platform does have its own regulations and guidelines that creators have to follow when it comes to political content –which I’ll tell you all about – but the fact is the political speech of an individual is one of the most protected forms of speech in the United States constitution. There is very little the federal government can do to regulate that. There have been attempts by the Federal Elections Commission – of course – but lawmakers on both sides of the aisle who regulate the FEC – pushed back on any kind of crack down so it just never happened. And why would these parties, PACs or organizations want it to be regulated? They don’t – obviously– because it behooves them to be able to get their messages out in any way they can. And influencers are just that influential. And don’t get it twisted – all parties do this.
So – you may be thinking – why isn’t political content regulated on the internet? It’s regulated on t-v and on the radio and in newspapers. You know that part of the ad that says — I’m so and so and I approve this message. That has to be there by law so you know who is behind the ad. So why is social media any different? Great question. Because for at least a decade there has been a debate over what internet content is considered a “public communication” that would require disclosure of the sponsor of the content and what content is considered constitutionally protected political speech made by an individual.
Of course – there are definitely laws the require influencers to disclose when they create content about a product or service. But political speech is very different than commercial speech. Commercial speech can absolutely be regulated and it is by the Federal Trade Commission. I have several videos about the federal laws influencers have to follow when they are promoting a product or service on the internet. But the FTC does not have any jurisdiction when it comes to elections, candidates or issues. Those squarely fall in the jurisdiction of the federal elections commission….and they’re – at least for now — at dead end.
That’s not to say nothing can be done. But at this point – that regulation is in the hands of each social media platform. Since they are private entities they can legally restrict through community guidelines — what kind of content is allowed….including paid political content. TikTok has the strictest policy – according to it guidelines – TikTok says “we do not allow ads featuring political content across any of our monetization features, including paid ads, creators being paid to make branded political content, and other promotional tools on the platform.”
Meta – which owns Facebook and Instagram does allow paid political ads and sponsored political content from creators as long as the group paying is registered in Meta’s ad library and the content follows community guidelines. YouTube – operated by Google – is similar to meta. Paid political ads and sponsored political content from creators is allowed as long as the advertiser is verified by google and complies with the rules of the states they target and the content itself is within the community guidelines. And on X formerly Twitter – it’s a free-for-all. Last year Elon Musk eliminated all restrictions on political ads. They just have to comply with the laws of the country where they originate.
Now – I’m sure you want to know what’s up with me and my content. First of all – I am not shaming any content creator who makes money from their content. Everyone has to live and support themselves. But because of my personal ethics as a journalist — I do not and have not taken a single penny from anywhere other than from the views I earn here on the platform or from my amazing subscribers who are so generous in supporting my work every single month or from the sale of my 2024 election guide – which I wrote myself. Lots of people tell me that’s a dumb policy to have but it’s how I have operated for the 21 years I have been a professional journalist. So if you want to support me and the work I do here….there are lots of ways to do that and I would obviously appreciate it.
TikTok’s policy.
Met’s policy.
X’s policy.
YouTube’s policy.
