Battle over Meta’s alleged Bolsonaro bias intensifies days before Brazil presidential runoff
Lula’s supporters suspect tech firm meddling on behalf of US president Donald Trump, who has close ties to Bolsonaro family
TL;DR
- Lula's campaign alleges Meta, owner of Instagram, interfered in Brazil's presidential election by restricting their content while allowing Bolsonaro's.
- Meta denies accusations, citing technical incidents affecting various political groups and emphasizing equal application of rules.
- Meta's oversight board expressed concern over "recurring enforcement failures" in election integrity efforts, referencing both Brazil and the US.
- The electoral court ordered Meta not to provide unequal treatment to candidates and demanded proof of fixes for issues affecting Lula.
- A watchdog report cataloged numerous instances of lost reach, restrictions, and account blocks predominantly affecting leftwing profiles.
- Meta's AI assistant reportedly refused to generate artwork featuring Lula but not Bolsonaro, which Meta attributed to a "specific gap in our safeguards."
- Some Lula supporters suspect Meta is acting on behalf of former US President Donald Trump, who has ties to the Bolsonaro family.
- Meta allowed over 1,600 election ads to be boosted from outside Brazil, violating Brazilian law, though no political bias was identified.
- Paid ads mimicking official posts and containing misinformation were identified on the eve of the vote, encouraging abstention.