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- Latest company to pledge to halt ad spending on Facebook over concerns hate speech and incitement
- Social media company made an estimated $70 billion annually from ads
WASHINGTON: US ice-cream giant Ben & Jerry鈥檚 said it will stop buying advertising space on Facebook, joining a growing list of prominent brands boycotting the social network over its perceived failure to crack down on hate speech and incitements to violence.
鈥淎s of July 1st we will pause all paid advertising on Facebook and Instagram in the United States,鈥� the Vermont-based confectioner said Tuesday.
The company added it was also joining the 鈥淪top the Hate for Profit鈥� initiative supported by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and other rights groups.
鈥淲e call on Facebook, Inc. to take the clear and unequivocal actions called for by the campaign to stop its platform from being used to spread and amplify racism and hate,鈥� Ben & Jerry鈥檚 said.
It is the latest company to pledge to halt ad spending on Facebook over concerns hate speech and incitement to violence are not being moderated on the platform.
Sporting goods maker Patagonia added its name to the list Sunday, joining rivals North Face and REI and the freelance staffing agency Upwork.
The #StopHateForProfit campaign comes as Facebook faces growing pressure over its hands-off approach to misinformation and inflammatory posts, including from US President Donald Trump.
The social media company made an estimated $70 billion annually from ads, the coalition claimed in a statement on the ADL website.
The campaign has criticized Zuckerberg鈥檚 decision to not moderate the US president, after the CEO again defended his decision not to limit Trump鈥檚 often controversial, incendiary and inaccurate posts.
Twitter鈥檚 decision in May to hide one of Trump鈥檚 tweets for 鈥済lorifying violence鈥� exposed turmoil at Facebook, with employees rebelling against Zuckerberg鈥檚 refusal to sanction false or inflammatory posts by the president.
Facebook last week said it removed ads by Trump鈥檚 re-election campaign that contained a symbol used in Nazi Germany for political prisoners, a move welcomed by rights activists.