Facebook to resume political ads March 4

FILE - In this April 14, 2020 file photo, the thumbs up Like logo is shown on a sign at Facebook headquarters in Menlo Park, Calif. Facebook’s quasi-independent oversight board issued its first rulings on Thursday Jan. 28, 2021 overturning four of five decisions by the social network to take down questionable content. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)

Facebook has announced that they will resume political, electoral, and social issue ads on Thursday in the United States.

The news comes after the social media company temporarily banned ads after the November 2020 U.S. presidential election.

“Unlike other platforms, we require authorization and transparency not just for political and electoral ads, but also for social issue ads, and our systems do not distinguish between these categories,” Facebook said in a blog post. “We’ve heard a lot of feedback about this and learned more about political and electoral ads during this election cycle. As a result, we plan to use the coming months to take a closer look at how these ads work on our service to see where further changes may be merited.”

Facebook said advertisers who want to submit new ads must have completed the ad authorization process that requires a “paid for by” disclaimer or edit existing, eligible ads to turn them back on.

The company added that its Ad Library would continue to record all ads about social issues, elections, or politics within 24 hours of the ad’s first impression.

Last week, Google lifted its ban on political advertising, CNN reported.