In the ongoing drive to correct their reputation following the fake news scandals of 2016, Facebook is making advertising more transparent to prevent abuse.

True news

Facebook’s making it easier for journalists and researchers to analyse political and national ads with the introduction of the Ad Archive API.

The new API provides campaign start and end dates, performance data, and ad creative, as well as impressions and a total of necessary spending.

These new features will also share info regarding demographic penetration, age, location, and gender. All of which have been driven by extensive research.

Learning as they go

Facebook has begun their research in consulting academics, researchers, and publishers within the US, focusing on the most useful details and the best way to improve API.

Facebook’s team of analysts have been encouraged by findings and will likely be rolled out more broadly as the API receives a larger release in the months to come.

Interested parties can request access to the archive by submitting this form and Facebook will respond once they finish initial testing. Meanwhile, advertisers will just have to wait patiently.

What do you think about Facebook’s research process? Do you think the new API will provide the value Facebook is predicting? We want to know what you think in the comments below.