BJP, online pages linked to it biggest political ad spenders on Facebook
The BJP and online websites and pages associated with the ruling party are among the top 10 political advertisers on Facebook, having spent over ₹10 crore in the last 18 months.
The BJP and online websites and pages associated with the ruling party are among the top 10 political advertisers on Facebook, having spent over ₹10 crore in the last 18 months.
The BJP is the largest spender in India under the “social issues, elections and politics” category, reveals data obtained from Facebook’s spending tracker. It has spent over ₹4.61 crore in 18 months since February 2019, as per data available till August 24, the Indian Express reported.
Community pages and websites linked to the BJP are among the other heavy spenders. While ‘My First Vote for Modi’ spent ₹1.39 crore on Facebook ads, ‘Bharat Ke Mann Ki Baat’ spent ₹2.24 crore, News and media website ‘Nation With Namo’ shelled out ₹1.28 crore, and a page on BJP leader R K Sinha accounted for ₹0.65 crore.
Cumulatively, the five advertisers, including the BJP, have spent ₹10.17 crore, which is about 64 per cent of the ₹15.81 crore spent by the top 10 advertisers, according to The Indian Express.
The main Opposition party in India, the Congress, spent ₹1.84 crore. The Aam Aadmi Party, which has a government in Delhi, is also among the top 10 spenders on political ads, having paid ₹69 lakh.
Relevant News: Hate speech & Facebook: Cut-throat politics amid fractious debates
Facebook India earned a total of ₹59.65 crore under the “social issues, elections and politics” category since February 2019. The earning included figures from ads on Instagram and other Facebook offerings, the data showed.
According to Facebook, an ad falls under the category if it is made “by or on behalf of a candidate, political party or advocates an outcome; is about a particular election or referendum; is regulated by political advertising, or is about a local social issue”.
Facebook recently got mired in a controversy after The Walls Street Journal reported that the social media giant refused to act against some objectionable content posted by BJP leaders and groups linked to the party as per its rules on hate speech, fearing its business in India, its biggest market, could get affected.
Facebook, however, denied the allegations saying it prohibits all kinds of hate speech or content that can cause violence. It enforces policies “without regard to anyone’s political position or party affiliation,” it said.
Relevant News: Congress writes to Zuckerberg, seeks inquiry into Facebook ‘hate-speech’ row
The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Information Technology, headed by Congress Member of Parliament Shashi Tharoor, has sought an explanation from Facebook on the report.