It seems the Irish abortion referendum is being seen by some as an experiment in controlling "improper" influence on popular votes. Some feel, however, the efforts of tech giants in this regard may be having it's own "improper" influence...
By restricting online advertising, tech giants could tip the balance in this month's abortion referendum. (Catholic Herald, excerpts)
"As the referendum on May 25 to liberalise Ireland’s strict abortion laws approaches, Google and Facebook have intervened to restrict online advertising aimed at Irish voters. Facebook has moved against non-Irish advertisers, mostly from the US, posting on Irish social media. Google has gone further and banned all online ads relating to the referendum.
Although this may seem a neutral move, it is thought that this will benefit the campaign to repeal the Eighth Amendment, which bans abortion in most circumstances. The No campaign (against repeal), which has largely been shut out of the Irish press, has relied heavily on social media to organise.
Ailbhe Smyth, a leader of the pro-repeal campaign, commented that Google’s move “creates a level playing field between all sides, specifically in relation to YouTube and Google searches”. However, Laoise Ní Dhubhrosa, of London Irish United for Life, told the Catholic Herald: “This is a very worrying development. Our experience has been that traditional media in Ireland is extremely biased against the pro-life position; most of the Irish newspapers have an editorial stance in favour of repealing the Eighth Amendment. In that context, pro-life groups have to rely on new media, including online ads, to get their message out there. The referendum requires an open democratic debate, not one in which content is censored and shut down on dubious grounds.”"
A major background influence to the online ban has been the fallout from recent political events such as the Brexit vote and, more importantly, President Trump’s election. The unexpected Trump victory caused a breach in the alliance between the Democratic Party and Silicon Valley that was forged by Bill Clinton in the 1990s. A large part of the Democratic base, rather than accepting that they had an uninspiring candidate or a poorly organised campaign, blamed their defeat on “fake news” and in particular on Russian disinformation efforts. So far, though, the evidence of Russian trolls influencing voters to support Trump or Brexit has been very thin.
Since the shocks of 2016, social media giants have been eager to prove that their platforms are resistant to trolls and disinformation, but in the polarised atmosphere of current American politics this has only led them deeper into claims of bias. Facebook has hired fact-checkers to supposedly ensure impartiality, but has been accused of targeting conservative news outlets. The company recently drew fire for threatening to penalise the Babylon Bee, a popular Christian satirical site, for publishing “fake news”."
"All of these claims of influence are exaggerated, but they do contain a grain of truth. Despite its rapid evolution into a post-Catholic society, Ireland retains one of the most restrictive abortion regimes in the world, and under the constitution the law can only be changed with the consent of the voters in a referendum. So the Irish result will be a huge prize to those around the world who are passionate about either side of the argument. It is no surprise that campaigners outside Ireland want to have their say.
But in the end, it is the Irish voters who will decide. Outside efforts may tip the balance if the result is extremely close. But more important factors will be the campaign on the ground, whether there is an enthusiasm gap between the two sides, and how much Catholic sentiment remains in a country where decades of scandal have demolished the Church’s institutional power.""
The full article can be read HERE