Facebook’s inaction on hate speech loses it one more ad client Verizon
US telecoms giant Verizon joined up with the growing set of brands vowing to avoid shopping for advertising on Facebook on Thursday over its perceived failure to crack straight down on hate speech and incitements to violence.
“We’re pausing our advertising until Facebook may create a satisfactory solution that makes us comfortable and is regular with what we’ve finished with YouTube and other companions,” said John Nitti, Verizon chief media officer.
Multiple companies-most recently Ben & Jerry’s-have announced they will halt advertising purchases found in July following the Anti-Defamation Group (ADL) called for the boycott within the “Give up the Hate for Earnings” campaign.
Facebook’s “hate speech, incitement, and misinformation policies are inequitable,” ADL chief executive Jonathan Greenblatt said in a letter Thursday.
Greenblatt noted the social media giant’s “haphazard” placement of advertising, pointing to a good example in which a Verizon ad appeared after that to “a video recording from the conspiracy group QAnon drawing on hateful and anti-Semitic rhetoric.”
Facebook is under increasing pressure because of its hands-off method of misinformation and inflammatory articles, particularly by US President Donald Trump.
The social media company produced an estimated $70 billion annually from ads, the coalition-which includes the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) -- behind #StopHateForProfit claimed in a statement on the ADL website.
“We respect any brand’s decision, and remain centered on the important do the job of removing hate speech and providing critical voting data,” said Facebook’s Carolyn Everson, vice president of global advertising solutions.
Shoe makers Patagonia, North Face and REI, in addition to the freelance staffing agency Upwork have all explained they might boycott Facebook.
Source: www.deccanchronicle.com
