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Lula campaign accuses Meta of electoral interference in Brazil
The presidential campaign of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has accused Meta of electoral interference, alleging that the company's platforms, including Instagram and Facebook, have restricted the reach of his content and hindered the promotion of his posts. The campaign claims that these technical issues and potential algorithmic selectivity favor his opponent, Flávio Bolsonaro, noting that Bolsonaro's page has reportedly seen significantly higher engagement despite having fewer followers.
In response, Meta has denied all allegations of political favoritism, calling them 'simply false' and stating that the technical issues mentioned were not exclusive to Brazil or specific accounts. The company maintains that it complies with Brazilian electoral rules and is committed to ensuring equitable platform use.
The Superior Electoral Court (TSE) has intervened, granting Meta a 48-hour deadline to provide detailed explanations regarding the alleged restrictions on content distribution and recommendation exclusions.
Simultaneously, the TSE has issued several rulings regarding campaign advertisements. Minister André Mendonça prohibited Lula's campaign from running paid ads that characterized Flávio Bolsonaro as being against the end of the 6x1 work schedule, ruling that the content was intended for negative campaigning. Additionally, Minister Kassio Nunes Marques ordered the suspension of a TV advertisement from Lula's campaign that made unsubstantiated claims regarding criminal investigations involving Flávio Bolsonaro and Alfredo Gaspar.
Entities
Alfredo Gaspar · Brasil · Brasil 22 Token · Brazil · Estela Aranha · Flávio Bolsonaro · Hyperkids África · HypersKids · Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva · Meta · Tribunal Superior Eleitoral
Claims
What the coverage asserts, and how many sources carry each claim.
- [○ 1 SOURCE] required crypto exchanges to identify clients who withdrew tokens within 48 hours afolhahoje.com
- [● 4 SOURCES] Flávio Bolsonaro denied any relationship with the website and claimed ignorance of its authorship www.cartacapital.com.br
- [● 8 SOURCES] ordered the suspension of the website brasil22token.com afolhahoje.com · www.gazetaweb.com · www.cartacapital.com.br
- [● 14 SOURCES] the website offered cryptocurrencies in exchange for social media posts supporting Flávio Bolsonaro afolhahoje.com · www.gazetaweb.com · www.cartacapital.com.br · revistaempreende.com.br · www.areavip.com.br · +1 more
- [● 11 SOURCES] the Lula coalition filed a representation with the PGE to investigate potential vote buying and paid electoral propaganda www.gazetaweb.com · www.cartacapital.com.br · afolhahoje.com · www.areavip.com.br · news.folhadoprogresso.com.br
- [● 2 SOURCES] the Ugandan dance group HypersKids received 120 million tokens www.gazetaweb.com
- [● 3 SOURCES] The site promised 30,000 tokens to each of the first 1,000 people who posted promotional content www.gazetaweb.com · afolhahoje.com
- [● 4 SOURCES] the TSE ordered the removal of promotional posts within three hours afolhahoje.com · www.areavip.com.br · www.gazetaweb.com
- [● 7 SOURCES] filed a formal complaint with the PGE to investigate potential vote buying and paid propaganda afolhahoje.com · www.gazetaweb.com · www.cartacapital.com.br
- [● 9 SOURCES] Flávio Bolsonaro claimed to be unaware of the website's authorship and denied any relationship with the project www.cartacapital.com.br · www.areavip.com.br · news.folhadoprogresso.com.br
- [○ 1 SOURCE] ordered crypto exchanges to identify the clients who withdrew the tokens within 48 hours afolhahoje.com
- [○ 1 SOURCE] HypersKids received 120 million tokens valued at approximately R$ 104.5 thousand