Silencing what they don't like to hear
In spite of Facebook and Twitter's obvious bias against conservative content, a number of liberal groups have apparently decided that the social media companies are not doing enough to enforce liberal orthodoxy and have begun a successful campaign to get companies to stop advertising there.
The latest company to fall in line is household products company Unilever, which has one of the largest advertising budgets in the world.
In a statement posted on its website, Unilever announced, "Given our Responsibility Framework and the polarized atmosphere in the U.S., we have decided that starting now through at least the end of the year, we will not run brand advertising in social media newsfeed platforms Facebook, Instagram and Twitter in the U.S. Continuing to advertise on these platforms at this time would not add value to people and society."
Among other brands, Unilever owns the Dove family of personal care products, Lipton Tea, Hellmann's Mayonnaise, and Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream.
According to a report from NBC News, Unilever spends over $8 billion annually in advertising for its various products. According to Unilever, their total advertising budget will remain the same, but will be shifted to "other media."
Facebook has faced immense pressure from organized liberal groups to take action to suppress content from President Donald Trump and his campaign, as Twitter has with a number of controversial posts.
According to NBC News, pressure was exerted on Unilever and other companies by a number of groups, including the NAACP, ADL, and "other groups such as Color of Change and Sleeping Giants, a group that targets advertisers that support certain right-wing content."
Other major companies including Verizon have also bowed to the pressure exerted by these groups and have halted Facebook advertising in recent days. Later Friday, Honda's American operations announced it would also halt its Facebook spending.
The move is clearly designed to either encourage Facebook and Twitter to be even more hostile to right-wing sites, or to force all news dissemination back through traditional channels, as it was before the internet made it easier for conservative voices and ideas to spread without the help of the mainstream media.
Facebook, for its part, denied that it was working to facilitate hate online, and claimed in a statement to have banned "250 white supremacist organizations from Facebook and Instagram" recently.
https://www.theblaze.com/news/liberal-groups-advertisers-withdraw-facebook
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