A recently signed Florida law dealing with political ad disclosure could drive more online ad dollars from state and local candidates and other groups to Google, Facebook, and other Web ad sellers. While most states have yet to craft rules about disclosure of payment for search, display, or social network ads, Florida’s new rules allow political candidates to run all sorts of online ads without including a “paid for by” style disclaimer.
“Political advertisers on the state and local level have been paralyzed,” said Jordan Raynor, president of Direct Media Strategies, a firm that handles digital campaigns for Republican campaigns and corporate clients. “I’ve had [Florida political] clients begging to spend money on Google or Facebook ads who haven’t been able to” because they can’t fit the disclaimer in the ads, he continued.
The new rules – tacked on to a Florida House bill and signed into law by Governor Charlie Crist — allow candidates, their supporters, and political committees running digital ads or messages to disregard standard guidelines for including disclaimers about who paid for them. Continue reading here.
