Should political ads be banned on social media?

Social media has transformed the way we debate politics.

Donald Trump, the president of the United States, often uses Twitter to announce new policies, attack an opponent or even re-tweet what many consider to be misleading information.

Facebook, Twitter and YouTube have been criticised for allowing political hate speech and misinformation to flourish on their platforms.

Now, with just a year to go before the US presidential election, Twitter is banning all political advertising around the world from next month.

While some Democratic candidates welcomed the move, Trump’s campaign manager called it “a very dumb decision” intended to silence conservatives.

So, will the ban encourage or stifle debate? And how will it be enforced? 

Presenter: Nastasya Tay

Guests:

Philip Brey – Professor of philosophy at the University of Twente and analyst on the philosophy of technology

Joe Watkins – Republican political strategist

Yair Cohen – Analyst on internet law and social media