The blocking of Meta, a real headache for political advertising
Federal political parties have taken divergent approaches to Facebook advertising since Bill C-18 to defend Canadian media sparked a standoff between Ottawa and the social media giant.
Experts warn, however, that advertising on Meta offers unparalleled reach that parties will struggle to replace.
They've invested so much money in these platforms over the years and they've collected so much data that it's not realistic to start from scratch with anything else," said Dennis Matthews, president of advertising agency Creative Currency
and a former communications adviser to Stephen Harper.
Among the major parties, different approachesThe Bloc Québécois has taken the strictest position on Meta. Yves-François Blanchet's party withdrew its ads in June, saying it would not pay a penny to Meta unless the company complies with Bill C-18, which requires social networking services to pay media for content published on their platforms.
The New Democratic Party hasn't aired an ad on Meta since the spring, according to the company's ad library records. However, the party told CBC News that it would keep the door open to the idea of resuming spending on the platform.
For now, the NDP will continue to do what most other parties are doing and reach Canadians with the various tools available, retorts the national director of the NDP, Anne McGrath.
The Conservatives continue to run their ads on Meta, which they use to denounce both the carbon tax and federal housing policy. The party led by Pierre Poilievre confirms that it has not reduced its spending at Meta.
Open in full-screen modePrime Minister Justin Trudeau has hammered home his intention to pass Bill C-18 despite protests from Meta and Google. (File photo)
As for the Liberal Party of Canada, it also spent money on Meta's platforms over the summer, despite the fact that the federal government itself cut its advertising spending.
The Liberals declined to comment on their advertising strategy.
In Quebec, the Coalition avenir Québec and the Parti Québécois boycotted advertising at Meta, while Québec solidaire and the Quebec Liberals continued to do so in the run-up to the October 2 by-election in the riding of Jean-Talon.
Divide between message and actionThe federal Liberals do not want to deprive themselves of this platform, because they have invested a lot in it, analyzes Mr. Matthews. They were considered the pioneers of digital advertising in Canada in 2015, he says.
Meta remains the dominant online platform [for] reaching voters. So there is no obvious number two to talk to.
A quote fromDennis Matthews, president of advertising agency Creative CurrencyThis liberal stance risks being perceived as hypocritical by voters, warns Alex Marland, a political science professor at Acadia University. This expert believes that the Liberals must choose between pursuing a long-standing advertising strategy and the coherence of their message.
The challenge for them is to decide whether it is worth being accused of hypocrisy when a Liberal government opposes it, when the party says it is OK. So far, they have managed to walk that tightrope, Marland said.
Electoral calculationThierry Giasson, professor of political science at Laval University, also points out the paradox in the Liberals' posture. Voters, he says, are exposed to a contradiction between the ideological positions of parties and the actions they take
as political organizations whose goal is to win elections.
Internal tensions between a party's public rhetoric and its electoral machine are not new, Matthews said.
"I'm sure there were times when political parties were frustrated by a [TV] channel but they continued to run advertising there," he adds.
Meta itself has been the biggest spender on political advertising in recent months. Since July, it has paid more than $600,000 for messages to inform users about its opposition to Bill C-18.
Based on information from Christian Paas-Lang, CBC News
Experts warn, however, that advertising on Meta offers unparalleled reach that parties will struggle to replace.
They've invested so much money in these platforms over the years and they've collected so much data that it's not realistic to start from scratch with anything else," said Dennis Matthews, president of advertising agency Creative Currency
and a former communications adviser to Stephen Harper.
Among the major parties, different approachesThe Bloc Québécois has taken the strictest position on Meta. Yves-François Blanchet's party withdrew its ads in June, saying it would not pay a penny to Meta unless the company complies with Bill C-18, which requires social networking services to pay media for content published on their platforms.
The New Democratic Party hasn't aired an ad on Meta since the spring, according to the company's ad library records. However, the party told CBC News that it would keep the door open to the idea of resuming spending on the platform.
For now, the NDP will continue to do what most other parties are doing and reach Canadians with the various tools available, retorts the national director of the NDP, Anne McGrath.
The Conservatives continue to run their ads on Meta, which they use to denounce both the carbon tax and federal housing policy. The party led by Pierre Poilievre confirms that it has not reduced its spending at Meta.
Open in full-screen modePrime Minister Justin Trudeau has hammered home his intention to pass Bill C-18 despite protests from Meta and Google. (File photo)
As for the Liberal Party of Canada, it also spent money on Meta's platforms over the summer, despite the fact that the federal government itself cut its advertising spending.
The Liberals declined to comment on their advertising strategy.
In Quebec, the Coalition avenir Québec and the Parti Québécois boycotted advertising at Meta, while Québec solidaire and the Quebec Liberals continued to do so in the run-up to the October 2 by-election in the riding of Jean-Talon.
Divide between message and actionThe federal Liberals do not want to deprive themselves of this platform, because they have invested a lot in it, analyzes Mr. Matthews. They were considered the pioneers of digital advertising in Canada in 2015, he says.
Meta remains the dominant online platform [for] reaching voters. So there is no obvious number two to talk to.
A quote fromDennis Matthews, president of advertising agency Creative CurrencyThis liberal stance risks being perceived as hypocritical by voters, warns Alex Marland, a political science professor at Acadia University. This expert believes that the Liberals must choose between pursuing a long-standing advertising strategy and the coherence of their message.
The challenge for them is to decide whether it is worth being accused of hypocrisy when a Liberal government opposes it, when the party says it is OK. So far, they have managed to walk that tightrope, Marland said.
Electoral calculationThierry Giasson, professor of political science at Laval University, also points out the paradox in the Liberals' posture. Voters, he says, are exposed to a contradiction between the ideological positions of parties and the actions they take
as political organizations whose goal is to win elections.
Internal tensions between a party's public rhetoric and its electoral machine are not new, Matthews said.
"I'm sure there were times when political parties were frustrated by a [TV] channel but they continued to run advertising there," he adds.
Meta itself has been the biggest spender on political advertising in recent months. Since July, it has paid more than $600,000 for messages to inform users about its opposition to Bill C-18.
Based on information from Christian Paas-Lang, CBC News
