'Horrifying and utterly unsurprising': The 'shady' abortion reversal ads running on Facebook
Social media giant Facebook has been allowing ads for an "unproven and unethical" abortion reversal procedure to be seen up to 18.4 million times over the last year and a half, The Daily Beast reports.
The "shady" ads are typically a part of anti-abortion campaigns, and advertise a "potentially dangerous," non FDA-approved abortion pill reversal method. According to a 92-ad analysis from the Center for Countering Digital Hate, such bulletins were viewed on Facebook "between 16.2 and 18.4 million times — including more than 700,000 times by children between the ages of 13 and 17" — from Jan. 1, 2020 to Sept. 8, 2021, The Daily Beast writes, per the CCDH. What's more, the social network reportedly "accepted between $115,400 and $140,667 for these ads over that time period, according to its own ad library."
But Zuckerberg isn't the only offender. "More than three-quarters of Google searches for terms related to abortion displayed similar ads," notes The Daily Beast. Both Facebook and Google have said they are investigating or have removed the flagged ads, respectively.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Dina Montemarano, research director at NARAL Pro-Choice America, called the CCDH's report "both horrifying and utterly unsurprising."
"[These companies] would rather let far-right anti-choice groups advertise an unproven, dangerous practice to literal teenagers than address even the lowest-hanging fruit of medical disinformation," she said.
Anti-abortion advocates have "for years" promoted abortion pill reversal, despite dubious studies and serious complications.
Dr. Nisha Verma, an abortion provider and American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists fellow, said ads like these project "this false narrative that people aren't sure, that people aren't getting counseling, that they're getting tricked into making these decisions and then changing their minds." She added, "And that then contributes to other attempts to restrict abortion." Read more at The Daily Beast.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Brigid Kennedy worked at The Week from 2021 to 2023 as a staff writer, junior editor and then story editor, with an interest in U.S. politics, the economy and the music industry.
-
Today's political cartoons - November 2, 2024
Cartoons Saturday's cartoons - anti-fascism, early voter turnout, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Geoff Capes obituary: shot-putter who became the World’s Strongest Man
In the Spotlight The 'mighty figure' was a two-time Commonwealth Champion and world-record holder
By The Week UK Published
-
Israel attacks Iran: a 'limited' retaliation
Talking Point Iran's humiliated leaders must decide how to respond to Netanyahu's measured strike
By The Week UK Published
-
FTC bans fake online product reviews
Speed Read The agency will enforce fines of up to $51,744 per violation
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
States sue TikTok over children's mental health
Speed Read The lawsuit was filed by 13 states and Washington, D.C.
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Is the AI bubble deflating?
Today's Big Question Growing skepticism and high costs prompt reconsideration
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
Amazon ending 'Just Walk Out' grocery checkout
Speed Read In its place, the company will let customers scan while they shop with Amazon Dash Cart
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
How social media is limiting political content
The Explainer Critics say Meta's 'extraordinary move' to have less politics in users' feeds could be 'actively muzzling civic action'
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
Justice Department bites Apple with iPhone suit
Speed Read The lawsuit alleges that the tech company monopolized the smartphone industry
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
House votes to force TikTok to sell or face US ban
speed read The House passed a bill to ban TikTok on national security grounds unless it sells to a non-Chinese company
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Apple kills its secret electric car project
Speed Read Many of the people from Project Titan are being reassigned to work on generative AI
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published