Facebook says it is sorry for a rejecting an advertisement supporting Republican U.S. Senate candidate Marsha Blackburn, calling the move a “mistake”.
The social media company’s response comes after Susan B. Anthony List, a national anti-abortion interest group, claimed Facebook rejected a 30-second video ad that supports Blackburn while slamming her opponent, Democrat Phil Bredesen.
“Facebook’s decision to take down this ad is just another example of the liberal elites of Silicon Valley censoring conservative ideas online,” Blackburn said in a statement. “We have repeatedly seen a demonstrated bias against conservatives and it needs to stop.”
News Channel 11 reached out to Facebook about the situation. The company issued this statement, apologizing for the mistake and saying it has restored the advertisement.
“This ad does not violate Facebook’s policies and should never have been rejected. We’re sorry for this mistake – the ad has been restored and is now running on Facebook.”
-Facebook spokesperson
Earlier this week, Google received criticism after it blocked two ads by the Tennessee Republican Party. The company says it rejected them due to profanity and swearing.
In 2017, Twitter blocked a video of Blackburn announcing her campaign for U.S. Senate over “inflammatory language.”