YouTube is bleeding major advertisers because of its hateful videos
Some of America's biggest advertisers are joining their British counterparts in boycotting Google.
AT&T, car rental giant Enterprise, and pharmaceutical company GSK have each decided to suspend all YouTube ads after The Times of Londonreported that the brands had appeared alongside videos with hate speech and extremism.
The companies are among the first in the United States to join what's become a full-scale revolt among advertisers in the UK this week.
SEE ALSO:Google finally gives brands more ways to keep ads off hateful Youtube videosThe decisions all come the day after Google announced a handful of new tools meant to give advertisers more control over where their ads appear. The search giant has also apologized repeatedly and vowed to beef up the staff dedicated to sussing out extreme content.
Apparently the company's assurances weren't convincing enough.
“We are deeply concerned that our ads may have appeared alongside YouTube content promoting terrorism and hate," an AT&T spokesperson said in an email statement. "Until Google can ensure this won’t happen again, we are removing our ads from Google’s non-search platforms."
Enterprise took its statement a step further with an indictment of automated digital ads as a whole.
"Programmatic buying is a relatively new advertising 'science,' and has only become mainstream within the last four or five years," an Enterprise spokesperson said. "It appears that technology has gotten ahead of the advertising industry’s checks-and-balances.There is no doubt there are serious flaws that need to be addressed."
GSK said it was encouraged by Google's "first steps" towards solving the problem but would pull ads from all Google platforms until the issue is resolved.
"The placement of our brands next to extremist content is completely unacceptable to us and we have raised our concerns directly with Google," a company spokesperson said. "We are encouraged by Google’s steps over the past few days to take action and will continue to work with them to make further progress in developing adequate safeguards to ensure that advertisers are not placed in this position."
The companies join British advertisers like HSBC, the Royal Bank of Scotland, L'Oreal, ad agency Havas UK, and others that have pulled their spending from Google this week in the wake of reports that ads were appearing on videos from former KKK leader David Duke, a homophobic preacher who praised the Orland nightclub shooting, among other extremists.
Google wouldn't comment on the decisions but reiterated that it was working towards fixing the issue.
"We don't comment on individual customers but as announced, we’ve begun an extensive review of our advertising policies and have made a public commitment to put in place changes that give brands more control over where their ads appear," a spokesperson said Wednesday. "We're also raising the bar for our ads policies to further safeguard our advertisers’ brands."
Speaking at the Advertising Week Europe conference in London this week, Google's head of European operations acknowledged that the problem wasn't confined to the UK.
It appears he was right.
Update March 22, 6:30 p.m. ET:
Johnson & Johnson has reportedly pulled its YouTube ads as well.
Tweet may have been deleted
Update March 23, 12 p.m. ET:
Lyft joins the boycott after a Mashable investigation. Monster.com says it is "investigating" an offensive placement.
Update March 24, 12 p.m. ET:
Starbucks, Walmart, Pepsi, GM and Dish have all joined too after the Wall Street Journal dug up ads on racist videos.
Tweet may have been deleted
Featured Video For You
Robotic glove lets people with limited hand mobility perform daily tasks
(责任编辑:行业动态)
-
Campbell highlights Washington Declaration amid security concerns over Putin
U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell, center, speaks during a joint press conference at the ...[详细] -
雅安日报讯国家统计局雅安调查队最新工业生产者价格调查显示:4月份,我市工业生产者出厂价格(PPI)同比下跌2.03%,跌幅较3月份缩小0.09个百分点。分类别按轻重工业类来看,与去年同期相比,轻工业类 ...[详细]
-
近日,“人社厅决定推行按‘工龄退休’的政策”在网上热传。对此,山东省人社厅、河北省人社厅、湖南省人社厅、四川省人社厅回应表示:该文章和相关截图内容为虚假信息。山东省人社厅辟谣近日,一篇名为《山东省将实 ...[详细]
-
饶平有礼,湾区共享!省直中直帮扶队将联袂把饶平美味端上湾区市民餐桌
饶平有礼,湾区共享!省直中直帮扶队将联袂把饶平美味端上湾区市民餐桌_南方+_南方plus饶平有礼,湾区共享!11月2-5日,省直中直组团单位驻饶平各帮扶镇工作队将携潮州单丛茶、饶平海鲜干货、蜂蜜等特色 ...[详细] -
NASA says Earth just had the hottest day ever recorded
In the 1800s, pioneering scientists foresaw how carbon in the air could warm Earth. By 1938, English ...[详细] -
切肢后躺在病床汽车在路上奔跑,发生车祸在所难免。如果车祸中,遇到肇事车司机年龄大,且一哭泣、二下跪,请求私了,声称损失多少赔多少时,你咋处理?是心生怜悯,同意私了?还是报交警部门依法处理?荥经县新民下 ...[详细]
-
仅三天!近100家水产企业咨询参展,中国水产种业“第一展”等你来!
仅三天!近100家水产企业咨询参展,中国水产种业“第一展”等你来!_南方+_南方plus“咨询参展的企业将近100家了。”第四届中国水产种业博览会简称“水产种博会”)定档11月24-26日在广州南沙区 ...[详细] -
陆河青梅:中国生态之乡的美丽经济大品牌_南方+_南方plus汕尾陆河,位于珠江三角洲东岸,是“中国生态养生之乡”“最年轻的客家县”,也是“中国青梅之乡”。亚热带季风气候使得这里阳光充沛、雨水充足,孕育 ...[详细]
-
2016's $400 GPU vs. 2019's $400 GPUs
Something we've been hearing a lot this year is that PC gaming is not in great shape, how there's a ...[详细] -
喜报连连!广东水产在四川农业博览会赢得世界500强亿元合作意向
喜报连连!广东水产在四川农业博览会赢得世界500强亿元合作意向_南方+_南方plus广东是中国第一水产大省,舌尖上的海鲜不断火出圈,饕餮食客心驰神往的鲜味,如今正飘向川渝大地的怀抱。10月27日-30 ...[详细]