By Murray Allatt
GTAEA-Australia has boosted on Facebook (paid for posts to be distributed) hundreds of posts offering booklets, CDs, DVDs and the Twenty-First Century WATCH magazine to targeted audiences in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the UK, the USA and the countries of northwest Europe.
Until very recently we have had no problem gaining approval to boost our Ads—which can variously consist of video of GTA TV programs, sermons, links to booklets on Biblical topics, links to GTA audio/video sermons and blog commentaries. However, as many other users of Facebook who boost posts have become aware, over the last six months there has been a fundamental shift in how Facebook treats it’s advertisers and their boosted posts (Ads).
In April, this year, we boosted a post advertising the new hard copy print edition of, The Ten Commandments booklet by Garner Ted Armstrong. The boosted post ran for 66 days–– without issue. However, on day 66 we were abruptly advised that the Ad was “Not Approved”. It still had a substantial budget in hand.
The explanation was given: “Not Authorized for Ads with Political Content
“Your ad was not approved because your Page has not been authorized to run ads with political content.
“What to do: Complete the authorization process.
“You can check the status of your review in your Support Inbox.”
The “political” post is shown below.
Now, what Facebook does not do––ever––is identify specifically what it is about a post that is claimed to be “political.” We are left to guess. Are the words “banished from court houses, schools and other public buildings,” political? Or did someone at Facebook read the book online and find something that qualified for Facebook’s definition of what is “political?”
If we look at the dictionary definitions of “political” we find there are several. The Oxford dictionary proffers the following:
“Political” – Adjective
1.1 Relating to the government or public affairs of a country.
“a period of political and economic stability”
1.2 Interested in or active in politics.
“I’m not very political”
1.3 Motivated by a person’s beliefs or actions concerning politics.
“a political crime”
2 derogatory. Done or acting in the interests of status or power within an organization rather than as a matter of principle.
Perhaps one of those definitions could be stretched. But really?
Facebook does have a stock response to queries about their rejection of ads, often ads that a few months earlier ran without issue. Here is one exchange:
“Hi Murray,
I’ve put together some information about our ad policies and the actions you can take.
Here’s what’s preventing your ad from being approved:
The text and/or imagery you’re using qualifies as political, based on the definition we’re using for enforcement.
“You can learn more about what qualifies as political in the Ads Help Center.
“What to do next:
“You must authorize your Page to run political ads. To begin the authorization process, please visit your Page’s Settings. You can find more information here. Once you’re authorized to run political ads, be sure to select the political ad option. Your ad will run with the political ad header and disclaimer.
“Thanks,
“Nick – Facebook Ads Team”
Now, when you go to the Ads Help Center you find a plethora of material of what Facebook now says requires “Ad authorization.”
When you click on Ads Help Center you find that not only “political” matters (according to Facebook’s enforcement policy) but matters of national importance also fall under the authorization process. Helpfully Facebook has listed topics that are verboten in boosted ads without authorization––at least so far as any ad running in or targeted to the USA. Below is just some of Facebook’s Ads Help Centre explanantion.
“This is an initial list of top-level issues that will be considered to require advertiser authorization and labeling for ads targeting the US. We expect this list may evolve over time.
- abortion
- budget
- civil rights
- crime
- economy
- education
- energy
- environment
- foreign policy
- government reform
- guns
- health
- immigration
- infrastructure
- military
- poverty
- social security
- taxes
- terrorism
- values” (Ah, values––have we fallen foul of this dot point by promoting “Christian” values in what Facebook would like to be a “values” free society?)
“Other Countries Not Listed Above: This section is only applicable to you if ad authorization is available in your country and your country isn’t listed above.
“If the ad authorization process is available in your country and you plan to run ads targeting your country that are related to politics or issues of national importance, we currently don’t enforce on a specific list of issues related to your country. You should use your own judgment and any applicable local requirements to determine what a “national legislative issue of public importance” is in your country. Issues may be topics discussed or debated at a national level that may influence the outcome of an election or result in/relate to existing or proposed legislation.”
As noted at the outset we are based in Australia, according to the above information, a country not yet under the thrall of Facebook’s “political’ advertising dictum. But we do boost into the USA, among other countries and therefore fall under this policy. As we have many of our “followers” located in the USA our posts now go there automatically regardless of targetting. But those ads get to followers in the US not by paid advertising boosts but by reason of they being “followers.”
Now, it would not be a problem if Facebook restrained itself to regulating genuine political Ads. But a TV program advertising a book about prayer? Most recently, August 4, our boost of a Garner Ted Armstrong TV program video, “Is God a Mystery?”, having been approved, was then two days into a seven-day boost, then the message, “Not Approved”.
You guessed it. The boosted ad was, “Not approved because your Page has not been authorized to run ads with political content.”
This particular video was embedded on our Facebook page and boosted from there. During it’s short run it had over 10,000 views.
The verbiage promoting the program was this:
IS GOD A MYSTERY?
In this TV program video Garner Ted Armstrong asks the question, “Is God a Mystery?” And “Is your religion any good to you if you can understand it?” Offered is a free booklet titled “Is God a Mystery?” There is also an audio sermon on CD,”Must You Believe In A Trinity To Be Saved?”
This video program remains on our Facebook page with our other embedded GTA TV program videos. The post remains on our page as well. Just not boosted. Should any wish to view the post and the video we’d be obliged to hear opinion as to how a program discussing the trinity rates as either “political’ or “a matter of national public importance” such as it requires authorization to run as a “political” ad.
Now, it may make some sense to be rated “political” the odd post we boost. In early July, we boosted an ad for the latest edition of Twenty-First Century WATCH magazine.
OK. Let’s concede the cover did depict a political event and the text has a familiar ring to it. No doubt. But let’s also ask whether if Newsweek or Time magazine (Do those magazines still exist?), or The New York Times, were running ads on Facebook to boost circulation and ran with that cover—would they need to be “authorized” by Facebook to run “political” ads? Probably not.
Facebook provides an inexpensive way to reach a large audience with the messages we wish to deliver. However, there is a more difficult path to navigate in Ad choice than was the case just a short time ago so far as what content can be boosted with some assurance it will not be later rejected. Initial approval does not guarantee later review will not result in a “Not Approved” status, due to a faceless person employed by Facebook determining what is “political” under Facebook’s “enforcement definition of ‘what is political.’” Those determinations appear to be very subjective in some instances.
Now, it certainly appears that all of this disruption in using Facebook’s boosted post facility has it’s origins in Donald Trump’s election in 2016 and the claim (among several claims as to why the defeat came about) by his opposition that Russia had a real impact on the election outcome by posting some ads favoring both him and his opponent on Facebook. We’re not blaming Donald Trump.
Now, as an organization based in Australia, with not just Australia but the Anglo world and the rest of the world to boost to, what if we just dropped the USA as a target country for our boosted (paid) Ads. Well, in line with Facebooks “helpful” instructions excerpted above, by excising the USA as a target country we resubmitted Ads for the GTA TV programs The Answer to Unanswered Prayer and Is God a Mystery––both “Not Approved” with the USA included as a target country––are now approved to run in Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the UK. We will resubmit other “Not Approved” Ads and target them to countries other than the USA. Hopefully all will be approved.
Now it may be that the political Left in these other countries will eventually have the ear of Facebook and other social media platforms and be able to impose similar bans on dissemination of Christian and other conservative messages in these countries by use of Facebook’s “political” definition and this bogus notion of “issues of national importance” including “values”. But right now, it is only the USA that Facebook, Twitter and the gaggle of other left leaning social platforms are interested to dictate what the populace reads and views.
Truly, the temptation is there to think this is all just a bad plot line from a Hollywood B grade “thriller.” That would be wrong. It really has the ring of Orwell’s 1984 at least as to what is transpiring in the USA. The rest of the western world may not be far behind. And all because Donald Trump won the 2016 Presidential election? Really.
So much for freedom of speech, freedom of association, freedom of religion.
