Estimated read time: Less than a minute
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
DUBLIN (AP) — Debate is raging in homes, pubs and streets across Ireland over whether to lift the country's decades-old ban on abortion.
Online, the argument is just as charged — and more shadowy, as unregulated ads of uncertain origin battle to sway voters ahead of Friday's referendum, which could give Irish women the right to end their pregnancies for the first time.
The emotive campaign took a twist this month when Facebook and Google moved to restrict or remove ads relating to the abortion vote.
Those decisions came amid concern about the role in the campaign of untraceable or foreign-funded online ads, which aren't covered by Irish electoral rules.
But anti-abortion campaigners say the restrictions are an attempt to hobble their successful online advertising strategy.
Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
