Contextualising Political Advertising Policy To Political Micro-Targeting In The South Africa 2024 Elections

Report Summary

The 2024 South African General Elections provided a significant case study in the use of political microtargeting on social media platforms, especially Facebook, as political campaigns increasingly employed data-driven techniques to influence voter behaviour. In this context, AIRA members, CIPIT and Legal Resources Centre (LRC) conducted a study to examine the extent and impact of political microtargeting in South Africa’s 2024 elections through both computational and legal lenses. This report provides a comprehensive analysis of the tactics employed, offering insights from these dual perspectives. It concludes with recommendations for legislative reforms to enhance transparency, accountability, and the protection of privacy in the context of political micro-targeting.