META Advertising By Political Parties In The Run Up To The General Election

Sinn Féin still thinks spending money on likes will get you into Government.

As subscribers and readers know, I regularly track the digital advertising antics of Irish political parties. It’s a realm where logic goes off to West Cork for a holiday, hashtags replace policies, and self-proclaimed Sinn Féin social media gurus huddle around a screen, debating the optimal number of emojis to put in a social media post.

During a general election, the social media frenzy of modern politics shows itself for what it is: a battle for eyeballs where the real winners are the social media platforms taking money from political parties, flogging whatever policies they think might connect with the undecided voters.

It’ll come as no surprise to anyone that Sinn Féin is burning through its seemingly endless supply of cash. Since August, Sinn Féin has spent €72,669 on advertising through META, Facebook and Instagram, and almost €30,000 on Google advertising during the same period, the combined spending of political parties with elected members to the Dáil has been €21,046. Sinn …