Unilever will cut back on advertising if Facebook, YouTube don't do more to combat divisive content


One of the world's largest advertisers plans on cutting back its ad spending on platforms like YouTube and Facebook unless they work harder to stop the spread of fake news and hate speech.
Per prepared remarks obtained by The Wall Street Journal on Sunday, Unilever Chief Marketing Officer Keith Weed is expected to make the announcement Monday at the Interactive Advertising Bureau's annual leadership meeting in California. "Unilever will not invest in platforms or environments that do not protect our children or which create division in society, and promote anger or hate," Weed will say. "We will prioritize investing only in responsible platforms that are committed to creating a positive impact in society."
Facebook has been criticized for allowing Russian agents to spread false information meant to divide Americans during the 2016 presidential election, while YouTube has faced a backlash for running ads on videos that promote hate and racism. Weed told the Journal he wants to work privately with these platforms to come up with solutions to these problems, and he believes other companies whose advertising dollars keep these sites running need to push them to change as well. "One can start by not putting ads on content we do not want to encourage," he said. Per the company's annual report, Unilever spent $9.4 billion in marketing its diverse brands, including Dove and Lipton, in 2017.
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.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
Can Trump put his tariffs on stronger legal footing?
Today's Big Question Appeals court says 'emergency' tariffs are improper
-
Film reviews: The Roses, Splitsville, and Twinless
Feature A happy union devolves into domestic warfare, a couple's open marriage reaps chaos, and an unlikely friendship takes surprising turns
-
Thought-provoking podcasts you may have missed this summer
The Week Recommends Check out a true crime binger, a deep-dive into history and more
-
New York court tosses Trump's $500M fraud fine
Speed Read A divided appeals court threw out a hefty penalty against President Trump for fraudulently inflating his wealth
-
Trump said to seek government stake in Intel
Speed Read The president and Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan reportedly discussed the proposal at a recent meeting
-
US to take 15% cut of AI chip sales to China
Speed Read Nvidia and AMD will pay the Trump administration 15% of their revenue from selling artificial intelligence chips to China
-
NFL gets ESPN stake in deal with Disney
Speed Read The deal gives the NFL a 10% stake in Disney's ESPN sports empire and gives ESPN ownership of NFL Network
-
Samsung to make Tesla chips in $16.5B deal
Speed Read Tesla has signed a deal to get its next-generation chips from Samsung
-
FCC greenlights $8B Paramount-Skydance merger
Speed Read The Federal Communications Commission will allow Paramount to merge with the Hollywood studio Skydance
-
Tesla reports plummeting profits
Speed Read The company may soon face more problems with the expiration of federal electric vehicle tax credits
-
Dollar faces historic slump as stocks hit new high
Speed Read While stocks have recovered post-Trump tariffs, the dollar has weakened more than 10% this year