Ferguson Suit Targets Google, Facebook Advertising

SEATTLE, WA - State Attorney General Bob Ferguson is suing Google and Facebook for failing to disclose information about political advertisements . Washington state and federal political candidates spent $3.4 million on Facebook ads and $1.5 on Google ads since 2013. Ferguson said that companies are legally required to keep track of who has purchased advertising and make that information available to the public, which he alleges the tech giants failed to do.

“Washington’s political advertising disclosure laws apply to everyone, whether you are a small-town newspaper or a large corporation,” Ferguson said in a statement. “Washingtonians have a right to know who’s paying for the political advertising they see.”

Eli Sanders, the associate editor of The Stranger, requested information on 2017 municipal election political advertising, but both companies did not provide the legally required information, according to Ferguson's statement.

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Image via Attorney General Bob Ferguson