Spotify will suspend all political ads in 2020, citing a need for tighter vetting tools and systems, Ad Age and Variety report. The announcement comes amid ongoing criticism of online platforms whose ad standards lag behind other media, allowing misleading or malicious content to reach voters.
In a statement to Variety and Ad Age, Spotify said, “We do not yet have the necessary level of robustness in our processes, systems and tools to responsibly validate and review this content. We will reassess this decision as we continue to evolve our capabilities.” Ads embedded in third-party content such as podcasts won’t be affected.
Earlier this year, Facebook controversially moved to exempt political ads from its accuracy standards. Major platforms such as Twitter and Google have either banned paid political ads or pledged to prohibit false statements.
Read Pitchfork’s feature on “How Artist Imposters and Fake Songs Sneak Onto Streaming Services.”