Brazilian court orders Meta to prove Lula and Bolsonaro get equal treatment
Summary
Brazil’s top election court fined Meta, the company that owns Facebook and Instagram, for not proving that it treats the two main presidential candidates equally on its platforms. The court ordered Meta to show in 24 hours that it does not favor either Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva or Flavio Bolsonaro ahead of the final presidential vote.Key Facts
- Brazil’s Superior Electoral Court increased Meta’s daily fine from 500,000 to 1 million reals ($100,000 to $200,000) for not following orders.
- The court wants Meta to prove it gives equal treatment to presidential candidates Lula and Bolsonaro on its social media feeds.
- Lula’s campaign said Meta limited the promotion and search visibility of his profile and disproportionately removed posts supporting him.
- Digital rights groups say Meta allowed more posts supporting Bolsonaro while limiting Lula’s content on Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp.
- Meta denies favoring any candidate but admits some of Lula’s campaign ads were temporarily taken down due to technical problems.
- Lula and Bolsonaro will compete in a runoff vote after neither won more than 50% in the first round.
- Political campaigns in Brazil spend heavily on social media advertising, surpassing traditional media like TV.
- Internal messages from Meta employees, reported by a Brazilian newspaper, showed awareness of uneven treatment of Lula and Bolsonaro’s social media posts.
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