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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 167 / Wednesday, September 1, 2021 / Proposed Rules
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Recent articles reveal that bona fide political campaigns use major social media platforms to advertise, connect with supporters, and fundraise 41 and that such engagement in social media use, for example, by creating a Twitter or Facebook account, typically increases donations for new politicians.42 For instance, reports of the most recent election reflect that candidates garnered support by posting photographs and hosting chats on Instagram.43 In addition, social media platforms enable political campaigns to build support by disseminating campaign updates 44 and targeting advertisements to potential voters,45 and they provide sophisticated tools to regularly measure user engagement.46
www.americanbar.org/groups/crsj/publications/
human_rights_magazine_home/voting-in-2020/
political-advertising-on-social-media-platforms/;
Daniel Kreiss, Regina G. Lawrence, and Shannon C.
McGregor, In Their Own Words: Political Practitioner Accounts of CandIdates, Audiences, Affordances, Genres, and Timing in Strategic Social Media Use, 35 Pol. Commcn 26, 1213 2018
finding that each social media platform, with different audiences and capabilities, provides a primary way for candidates to introduce themselves to vastly dispersed constituencies and build their support among potential volunteers, donors, and voters.
41 See, e.g., Maria Petrova, Ananya Sen, and Pinar Yildirim, Social Media and Political Contributions:
The Impact of New Technology on Political Competition, Management Science, 78 2020
Petrova, Social Media and Political Contributions;
Daniel Kreiss and Shannon C. McGregor, Technology Firms Shape Political Communication:
The Work of Microsoft, Facebook, Twitter, and Google with Campaigns During the 2016 U.S.
PresIdential Cycle, 35 Pol. Commcn, 15859 2018.
42 Petrova, Social Media and Political Contributions, at 28.
43 University of Pennsylvania Knowledge @
Wharton, How Social Media Is Shaping Political Campaigns Aug. 17, 2020, https
knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/how-socialmedia-is-shaping-political-campaigns/.
44 See Petrova, Social Media and Political Contributions, at 5, 2627 More frequent and more informative tweets e.g., including links to websites, responding to news fast, or more antiestablishment Tweets are associated with receiving higher contributions after adopting Twitter..
45 See, e.g., Google Transparency Report Help Center, Political Advertising on Google FAQs, https support.google.com/transparencyreport/
answer/9575640zippy=%2Cwhat-targetingcriteria-can-be-used-for-election-ads last visited May 25, 2021; Snapchat Business Help Center, Audience Insights, https businesshelp.snapchat.
com/s/article/audience-insights?language=en_US&_
ga=2.101326145.1539846222.16218797961506173507.1621879796 last visited May 25, 2021.
46 See, e.g., Facebook Business Help Center, About Breakdowns, Metrics, and Filtering in Ads Reporting, https www.facebook.com/business/
help/264160060861852 last visited May 25, 2021
Ads Reporting allows advertisers to analyze demographic metrics including country, region, and designated market region; Google Ads Help, About Measuring Geographic Performance, https
support.google.com/google-ads/answer/
2453994?hl=en last visited May 25, 2021 Report Editor generates reports, which can show performance of ads targeted by location.

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In order that our rules reflect ordinary campaign practices, we propose to add the use of social media for the purpose of promoting or furthering a campaign for public office to the list of recognized campaign activities in 73.1940f and 76.5q. We seek comment on this proposal and the types of campaignrelated activities for which social media could be used in demonstrating a substantial showing of a bona fide candidacy. For instance, a candidate might use social media to raise funds, solicit votes, share policy positions, and engage in digital dialogues with voters.
We note that we are not proposing that social media presence alone would be sufficient to support a status of legally qualified candidate but that it would be an additional indicator of activities commonly associated with political campaigning needed to make substantial showing of a bona fide candidacy.
We also propose to add creation of a campaign website to the list of recognized campaign activities in 73.1940f and 76.5q. Recent articles indicate that campaign websites, like social media platforms, are used by candidates to connect to a wide audience of potential voters instantaneously and facilitate direct communication and fundraising.47
Accordingly, we tentatively conclude that adding the creation of a campaign website to the list of recognized activities is justified for the same reasons provided in support of including use of social media. We again note that a website alone would not be sufficient to support a status of legally qualified candidate but that it would be an additional indicator of activities commonly associated with political campaigning needed to make substantial showing of a bona fide candidacy. We seek comment on this conclusion and the proposal.
Finally, we seek comment on whether other activities consistent with modern campaign practices, such as the use of digital marketing and advertising, should be added to the list of recognized campaign activities in 73.1940f and 47 See, e.g., Dick Morris, Direct Democracy and the internet, 34 Loy. L.A. L. Rev. 1033 2000; Diana Owen, New Media and Political Campaigns, The Oxford Handbook of Pol. Commcn 2014. since 2008, campaigns have used websites to incorporate interactive applications and link to their social media accounts; Elisa Shearer, Pew Research Center, CandIdates Social Media Outpaces Their websites and Emails As An Online Campaign News Sources 2016, https www.pewresearch.org/facttank/2016/07/20/candidates-social-mediaoutpaces-their-websites-and-emails-as-an-onlinecampaign-news-source/ while candidates social media posts outpace campaign websites as a source of online campaign news, campaign websites are also an important source of online campaign information.

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76.5q. If additional activities are included, should the substantial showing analysis involve any limiting factors, such as requiring that the marketing and advertising be directed toward persons in areas where votes are being solicited?
B. Implementation of the BCRA and Section 315 of the Act We propose to revise the political file rules for broadcast licensees, cable operators, DBS providers, and SDARS
licensees to bring them into conformity with the BCRA and section 315e of the Act.48 As discussed above, in 2002, Congress enacted the BCRA, which, among other things, adopted new section 315e of the Act.49 While the Commission has advised relevant parties consistent with the recordkeeping requirements embodied in section 315e, the rules were not updated. Therefore, the changes that we are proposing today would conform our rules to the statutory requirements.
Specifically, section 315e1 codifies the requirement that information regarding any request to purchase advertising time that is made on behalf of a legally qualified candidate for public office, also known as candidate ads, be placed in the political file. It also specifies that the political recordkeeping obligations include any request for the purchase of advertising time that communicates a message relating to any political matter of national importance, also known as issue ads.50 Section 315e2 identifies the specific records that must be placed in political files for both candidate ads and issue ads that communicate a message relating to a political matter of national importance.51 These records include whether the request to purchase broadcast time has been accepted or rejected, information about the advertisements, and information about the advertiser. The Commissions political file rules for broadcast licensees, cable television system operators, DBS providers, and SDARS
licensees currently require these entities to maintain for public inspection only those records that relate to requests for time by or on behalf of candidates for public office.54 These rules make no mention of the obligation specified in section 315e1B of the Act to also maintain records of requests for time about issue ads that communicate a 48 47 U.S.C. 315e; 47 CFR 25.701d, 25.702b, 73.1943, 76.1701.
49 Public Law 107155, 504, 116 Stat. 81 2002
codified at 47 U.S.C. 315e.
50 47 U.S.C. 315e1a through b.
51 47 U.S.C. 315e2.
54 47 CFR 25.701d, 25.702b, 73.1943, 76.1701.

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