Highlights:
- On Thursday, Verizon declared that it is withdrawing advertising from Facebook and Instagram.
- Anti-Defamation League on Thursday released an open letter that mentioned it had found an advertisement for Verizon, “appearing next to a video from the conspiracy group QAnon drawing on hateful and antisemitic rhetoric.”
- Facebook’s stock fell by 2% Thursday evening.
On Thursday, Verizon declared that it is withdrawing advertisement from Facebook until the company can provide an acceptable solution that makes them comfortable.
Moreover, a halt is applied to both Facebook and Instagram, as reported by a company spokesman. The marketers Ben and Jerry’s, Patagonia, and REI also said that they plan to curb advertising on these social media platforms.
Facebook stock fell by 2% Thursday evening.
A herd of six organizations called on Facebook advertisers to pause their expenditure on the social media platform in the month of July.
The groups include the Anti-Defamation League, the NAACP, Sleeping Giants, Colors of Change, Free Press and Common Sense, have asked “large Facebook advertisers to show they will not support a company that puts profit over safety”.
On Thursday, the Anti-Defamation League addressed companies through advertising on Facebook signed by the organization’s CEO and National Director Jonathan Greenblattt. In the letter, the organization said “it found an advertisement for Verizon appearing next to a video from the conspiracy group QAnon drawing on hateful and antisemitic rhetoric, warning that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is planning to bring on civil war with concentration camps and coffins at the ready and claiming Americans are already quarantined in militarized districts.”
“We have strict content policies in place and have zero tolerance when they are breached, we take action,” Verizon’s Chief Media Officer John Nitti said in a statement. “We’re pausing our advertising until Facebook can create an acceptable solution that makes us comfortable and is consistent with what we’ve done with YouTube and other partners”.
As per the analysis and statistics of market Pathmatics, Verizon spent around $406,600 in Instagram ads between May 22 and June 20. The firm confirmed Verizon spent $1,460,300 on Facebook in the same period.
Facebook did not respond instantly on Thursday. According to the Wall Street Journal, Carolyn Everson, the Company’s VP of global business sent a memo saying that it doesn’t “make policy changes tied to revenue pressure” and that it sets “policies based on principles rather than business interests.”
“We respect any brand’s decision, and remain focused on the important work of removing hate speech and providing critical voting information,” Everson said in an emailed statement sent by the company Thursday. “Our conversations with marketers and civil rights organizations are about how, together, we can be a force for good.”
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