AAPC Applauds Disney Decision to Continue to Provide Access for Political Speech and the Democratic Process on Hulu

CONTACT:
Alana Joyce
Executive Director
703-245-8021

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

July 27, 2022

 

AAPC APPLAUDS DISNEY DECISION TO CONTINUE TO PROVIDE ACCESS FOR POLITICAL SPEECH AND THE DEMOCRATIC PROCESS ON HULU

MCLEAN, VA – The American Association of Political Consultants (AAPC) supports Disney’s decision today to reverse its ban on political campaign and issue ads on Hulu’s streaming service. Connected television (CTV) has become a critical means for campaigns to reach a broad audience of voters, especially audiences who may not access traditional forms of media.

“We applaud Disney’s decision to accept campaign and issue ads on Hulu, a key platform for reaching a broad audience,” said Becki Donatelli, Republican consultant and President of AAPC.

Hulu’s earlier practice of banning political campaign and issue advertising based solely on the subject matter was a blow to free speech, a cornerstone of our democratic society. AAPC believes that suppression of political advertising ultimately reduces the ability of people to participate and learn about the democratic process – including the candidates, political organizations and policy issues that matter to them.

“While screens for misinformation and hate speech and imagery are important, a blanket ban went too far,” said Larry Huynh, Democratic consultant and Vice President of AAPC.

Given the explosive growth of digital platforms as a critical means to reach voters–especially for small, local, and down ballot campaigns—AAPC has met with key platform providers, including Disney/Hulu, Google, Meta, and Snap to discuss areas of mutual interest, including the formulation of political ad policies and the promotion of .

AAPC steadfastly supports the foundational principles of political free speech enshrined in the U.S. Constitution and urges full access to social media networks, email service providers, texting platforms and digital news and content publishers for all official campaigns and political and non-profit organizations.

AAPC stands ready to work with all media partners to develop strong policies to uncover and stop misinformation while protecting free speech for campaigns and issue advocacy efforts.

 

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About AAPC

Founded in 1969, the AAPC is a multi-partisan organization of political and public affairs professionals dedicated to improving democracy. The AAPC has over 1,500 members hailing from all corners of the globe. It is the largest association of political and public affairs professionals in the world. The AAPC Foundation supports efforts to protect free speech, defend democracy, and prepare the next generation of political consultants to thrive. For more information, see .

AAPC Urges Meta To End Its New Ill-Advised and Harmful Restrictive Ad Policy

Contact:
Alana Joyce
Executive Director
703-245-8021

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

November 11, 2021

 

AAPC URGES META TO END ITS NEW ILL-ADVISED AND HARMFUL RESTRICTIVE AD POLICY
Washington, D.C. —The American Association of Political Consultants (AAPC) urges Meta to reverse its latest restrictions on free speech that will directly limit the ability of people to participate and learn about the candidates and policy issues that matter to them.
As the only bipartisan organization representing political campaign professionals, we know that these limits will gag legitimate candidates and organizations, while doing nothing to crack down on anonymous accounts devoted to spreading inflammatory and false information. We urge Meta to put an end to this ill-advised and harmful policy.
The main source of news and opinion for millions of Americans, Meta has a responsibility to provide fair access to fully disclosed campaign and policy advertising by legitimate candidates and organizations, while investing to stop dangerous and reckless fake misinformation accounts.
Social media and the cost-effective advertising available on Facebook’s platform have fueled many first-time candidates, advancing our democracy. Meta’s ban makes it less likely that first-time candidates with limited resources will advance in the political process.
We look forward to working with Meta, other technology companies and our Nation’s lawmakers to put an end to these discriminatory bans that harm the advancement of candidates seeking to advance our democracy.

 

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About AAPC

Founded in 1969, the AAPC is a multi-partisan organization of political and public affairs professionals dedicated to improving democracy. The AAPC has more than 1,600 members hailing from all corners of the globe. The Board of Directors is comprised of 32 members, evenly divided between Republicans and Democrats. It is the largest association of political and public affairs professionals in the world. For more information, see www.theaapc.org.

AAPC Statement on Facebook Political Ad Policy

Contact:
Alana Joyce
Executive Director
703-245-8021

 

For Immediate Release

June 18, 2020

 

AAPC STATEMENT ON FACEBOOK POLITICAL AD POLICY

 

We believe that suppression of political advertising reduces the ability of voters to learn about the candidates and policy issues that matter to them. Suppressing advertising is suppressing free speech and a campaign’s ability to reach a broad community online.

Facebook is choosing to gag legitimate, fully disclosed campaign and policy advertising, while doing little to crack down on anonymous accounts devoted to spreading inflammatory and false information.

While voters may be tired of the long presidential race, they may not even know that their school district is planning a bond measure, the city council is considering cuts to library hours, or a tax increase will be on the ballot. With the decline of local journalism, voters may never hear the arguments from both sides if they opt out.  Small, local campaigns with budgets of only a few thousand dollars are the ones that will be hurt the most when voters mute campaigns, thinking only of the presidential race noise. Muting campaign advertising impinges on the kind of dialogue most needed, and keeps voters separated in their own bubbles, listening to themselves.

This decision undermines free speech. We urge Facebook to reverse this ill-conceived decision and ensure full access to their platform for all legitimate campaigns and all points of view.

 

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About AAPC

Founded in 1969, the AAPC is a multi-partisan organization of political and public affairs professionals dedicated to improving democracy. The AAPC has more than 1,600 members hailing from all corners of the globe. The Board of Directors is comprised of 32 members, evenly divided between Republicans and Democrats. It is the largest association of political and public affairs professionals in the world. For more information, see www.theaapc.org.