Facebook bans new political ads in week before election as Zuckerberg warns of unrest

The announcement came as part of a series of steps to address concerns about how Facebook could be used to manipulate the election, and included a warning from Zuckerberg about potential unrest around the U.S.

I'm also worried that with our nation so divided and election results potentially taking days or even weeks to be finalized, there could be an increased risk of civil unrest across the country.

Facebook's move comes amid growing fears that President Donald Trump and his supporters will use social media to spread evidence-free claims of voter fraud and cast doubt on mail-in votes, which are likely to delay the final results for several days.

The new steps also come after Facebook's hesitance to take more aggressive action on misinformation spread by President Donald Trump has made the company and Zuckerberg the target of heated criticism, including from within the company.

While Facebook has declined to take more aggressive action, such as Twitter's ban on all political ads, the company has made a series of changes in recent months including allowing users to opt out of political ads.

Thursday's announcement of a ban on new political and issued ads in the week leading up to Election Day adds to that list, though it may not have the same impact as it would in previous elections.

Democrats are also concerned that Trump and his supporters will use social media platforms like Facebook, YouTube and Twitter to advance false claims.

But it's going to take a concerted effort by all of us political parties and candidates, election authorities, the media and social networks, and ultimately voters as well to live up to our responsibilities.