“Facebook’s Sheryl Sandberg just hinted that Russian-bought ads could be fair game”

Business Insider:

Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg told Axios’ Mike Allen on Thursday that the company would not have removed the political ads purchased by accounts operating out of Russia if they had been posted by real people rather than fake accounts….

Laura Rosenberger, director of the Alliance for Securing Democracy and a senior fellow at The German Marshall Fund of the United States, said Friday that Sandberg’s comments miss the point.

“Foreign governments should not be able to purchase such political ads, period,” she wrote on Twitter, adding that any “loophole” allowing them to buy these ads should be closed.

While it is illegal for a foreign government or entity to spend money on political ads in an attempt to sway a US election, “there is no doubt disagreement over which ads are covered by the prohibition,” said election law and campaign finance expert Rick Hasen.

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