Facebook Embeds Advised Trumps Campaign, Digital Director Says

[.99center]

Source: Bloomberg

By Sarah Frier and Bill Allison
October 6, 2017, 7:42 PM CDT

Facebook Inc.’s platform was a crucial messaging tool for President Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign, according to the campaign’s digital director -- who told CBS’s “60 Minutes” that he hand-picked pro-Trump “embeds” from the company to help him use the platform in targeted ways.

“Twitter is how [Trump] talked to the people, Facebook was going to be how he won,” Brad Parscale told “60 Minutes,” according to an excerpt of an interview that the program intends to air Sunday. The social-media platform was particularly valuable because it allows for targeted messaging, Parscale said, according to the excerpt.

Facebook’s employees showed up for work at his office multiple days a week to provide guidance on how to best use the company’s services, Parscale said in the interview excerpt. “I wanted people who supported Donald Trump,” he said -- and he questioned the workers about their political views.

Parscale didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. A Facebook spokesman said the company provided the Trump campaign with the same guidance and services it offers any major advertiser.

Read more: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-10-07/facebook-embeds-helped-trump-win-parscale-tells-60-minutes

[rockfordfile]

1. Wow. Facebook and Russian/Trump. I think Facebook lied about having anybody embed

[groundloop]

2. Mixed feelings.... on one hand it sounds like Facebook was hired much as an ad agency would be

If that's the case then those people were just doing the job they were hired to do.

On the other hand, if they went beyond advising on how to advertise/use the platform they need to be investigated for interfering in an election.

[Calista241]

4. You're going to run into 1st Amendment issues

In general, you can say whatever you want on the internet, revenge porn being the one exception. Political true believers have never been a bastion of truthfulness in any case, and there's no law governing what you can and can't say on the internet.

If there was a law like that, sites like DU would be in serious legal jeopardy.

[Justice]

9. Current campaign laws require disclosure of source funding for ads, copies etc. filed with FEC

But laws don't capture "new" technology used for ad platforms - limited to TV - network and cable. Need to update law to extend to new platforms.

[Exultant Democracy]

5. I agree, this seems like an ordinary service for an ad firm

However any other American ad firm that had sold political ads to the Russians would be in big trouble. If they want to play by the same rules as everyone fine, but that can be savvy political advisors while also not bothering to do the due diligence to keep the Russian ads out.

[jl_theprofessor]

8. The Russian thing is interesting.

I doubt it happened, but if they knowingly allowed for Russian ad buys on political issues, it'll be trouble.

[Exultant Democracy]

16. They alerted the FBI during the election about the Russian Ad buys.

So yes they knew and they did nothing except try to cover their asses.

[OnDoutside]

3. I've said it here before, Zuckerberg is dirty. He knew. That's why

he has been putting out feelers about 2020.

[dalton99a]

13. Yep.

[rockfordfile]

17. yeah I agree

[LovingA2andMI]

6. Smoking Gun!!!

Facebook needs to be shut down as a Social Media Company, ASAP! WOW, just WOW!

[jl_theprofessor]

7. For what?

It was hired to provide consultation on a presidential campaign.

[LovingA2andMI]

21. With 17 Posts and Asking For What???

This Post and the Question is HIGHLY Suspect. Welcome to DU. Enjoy your stay however short or long it may be.

[Justice]

10. I understood Clinton campaign had FB people as well

Not sure if they were vetted in the same way.

But this all explains that with just a handful of people - Russian hackers to steal voter registration, DNC data, filter thru Wikileaks, give to Cambridge Analytica to perform analysis with other data and create profiles on people, give to Brad Parscale who works with FB on how to target - pretty effectively results in target ads that his shop created to right people/geography to receive.

[PatSeg]

12. Plus Facebook

was using Kaspersky Lab and still is. What kind of information about Facebook users was Kaspersky able to capture?

[dalton99a]

14. The Russian connection runs deep and wide

across key social media platforms - Facebook, Twitter, Google, LinkedIn, ....

[PatSeg]

15. It is really overwhelming

This did not happen overnight. It took years of plotting and planning. Meanwhile, no one seemed to take notice, though now we can see so many red flags. Putin must be laughing his ass off at how naive we were and still are to some degree.

What else have they done that we are oblivious to?

[rockfordfile]

18. I think that a lot of the Russian/Trump collusion on the election started early on

[PatSeg]

20. That is how it is starting to look

I think we are in for a lot of surprises. Looks like Tom Clancy wrote this script, except it is too far fetched to be fiction.

[rockfordfile]

19. Facebook clearly was with Russia/Trump. That's un-American as hell

[Calista241]

11. And I doubt the customer used

“The Russian Federation” as their Bill To Company name, or used “The Kremlin” as their bill to address.

Facebook and Google sell millions of ads to all sorts of people. I doubt it even occurred to them political ads could be used for this type of thing.