Photo Courtesy of Kevin P. Coughlin/Office of the Governor
By signing DPA into law, “we will bring transparency to all online political ads including those on social media, and restore fairness and honesty to the electoral process for generations to come,” Gov. Cuomo said.
By Forum Staff
Governor Andrew Cuomo last week signed into law the Democracy Protection Act, making New York the first state in the nation to enact legislation that, in the wake of the recent Facebook scandal, aims to bring accountability and transparency to political ads on all media platforms.
During the 2016 presidential election, as many as 126 million Americans are estimated to have seen Russian-bought political ads on Facebook last year alone, without realizing that they were seeing content paid for by Russia. Additionally, Cuomo noted, 131,000 Twitter messages have also been identified and linked to more than 36,000 Russian accounts.
And, according to Pew Research Institute, 69 percent of Americans across all age groups use some type of social media, proving that now more than ever it is critical that the regulation of advertisements on social media is addressed. Political advertisements on social media platforms are not currently regulated in the United States the same way as advertisements on traditional media platforms, which has created new opportunities for “disruptive and deceitful actors” to influence the political process, Cuomo said.
“New York is the first state in the nation to take action to put an end to foreign influence in our elections, and by signing this legislation, we will bring transparency to all online political ads including those on social media, and restore fairness and honesty to the electoral process for generations to come,” the governor added.
According to the administration, the Democracy Protection Act amends the definition of “political communication” to include paid Internet and digital advertisements.
The legislation:
• Ensures foreign entities are prohibited from forming an independent expenditure committee and purchasing political ads in order to influence New York elections;
• Requires all digital ad buyers to register as an independent expenditure committee, just as they are required to when purchasing time on television;
• Requires paid independent political online ads to clearly display that the ad was not authorized by any candidate and who actually paid for the ad; and
• Directs the State Board of Elections to create an online archive of all political communications for a set period in order to make them transparent and accessible to the press, fact-checkers, political opponents and the public.
“With the increased use of social media as a platform by which people receive their news, it is extremely important that people understand the source of the content they are consuming,” said U.S. Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-Queens and Nassau). “I applaud Gov. Cuomo for shedding sunlight on this critical issue and increasing transparency on political ads in NY.”
Lieutenant Gov. Kathy Hochul called DPA “a model” for the rest of the union.
“As someone who has been elected to every level of government, I know how important it is to protect the integrity of the electoral process. The transparency required for online political advertising should be no different than that required for traditional print or electronic political ads,” she said. “That is why I’m proud that New York is the first state to have comprehensive accountability of political advertising.”
