As President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration gets closer, Facebook continues its breakdown on potential domestic terrorism. According to social networks, BuzzFeed News told that the world’s largest social network Facebook was banning US ads for gun accessories and military gear (holsters, body armour and etc.) at least till January 22nd.
In response to BuzzFeed spokesperson Liz Bourgeois has told, that the step was taken for the “excess of caution”.
Facebook has already banned ads for guns, ammo and gun improvements like silencers.
The restriction also warns of a spike in ads for the gun improvements in the days following the January 6th Capitol protest. For the people who followed extreme right-wing groups and pages, the ads were frequently popping. Those ads often directly raised the possibility of violence surrounding Biden’s inauguration.
Some of the ads added to the fears the Facebook’s users as they were questioned whether they are well prepared for turmoil in the lead-up to Inauguration Day.
While attorneys general for Illinois, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Washington, DC urged Facebook to suspend ads, Senators Richard Blumenthal, Sherrod Brown and Tammy Duckworth blamed Facebook of benefiting from the turmoil.
Hours before taking this decision, Facebook blocked the events in the DC area and few days before they banned all the mentions of the slogan “stop the steal”
On Saturday the company said Facebook is temporarily prohibiting ads for service and gun accessories in the US till the situation settles down to normal. They will remove the ban only after the Jan. 20 presidential inauguration.
The thought appears to be the same: Facebook doesn’t want even the slightest if violence erupts during inauguration week, even if it’s a largely typical move when radicals may already have the things they need.
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