Brazilian court gives Meta 48 hours to explain issues involving President Lula — France 24

In Brazil, the Superior Electoral Court (TSE) gave Meta 48 hours to explain whether it had reduced the reach of posts by the campaign of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, as well as to clarify reported anomalies in video metrics, France 24 reports.

Lula campaign’s complaint

Lula’s campaign said that Meta’s platforms — Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram — had allegedly limited the distribution of its content. It claimed that the president’s profile was unable to promote posts in the Instagram feed, while view counting stopped on one post from the official account, affecting its reach.

Campaign representatives also said that ahead of the first round of voting, held last Sunday, the profiles of Lula and other left-wing politicians suddenly stopped appearing in Instagram searches. The campaign filed a complaint with the electoral court. It believes that the series of technical problems may indicate an attempt to interfere in the electoral process in favor of Senator Flávio Bolsonaro.

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Meta’s position and the election

Meta’s Brazilian office rejected the accusations, calling them unfounded. The company said that many of the cited technical problems were not limited to Brazil or individual accounts. Meta also said it complies with election rules and seeks to ensure equal conditions for using its platforms.

The court ordered Meta to provide information on all measures applied to Lula’s official accounts, separately for each profile, and to explain the anomalies in video metrics. Lula, who is seeking a fourth non-consecutive presidential term, will face Flávio Bolsonaro — the son of former President Jair Bolsonaro — in the second round on October 25. According to the report, Flávio Bolsonaro came first in the first round.