Disney, Facebook's top advertiser, reportedly slashes ad buys

(Image credit: Robyn Beck / Getty Images)

Walt Disney Co. has dramatically but quietly cut its advertising on Facebook and its Instagram subsidiary, The Wall Street Journal reports. The entertainment giant was the biggest advertiser on Facebook for the first six months of 2020, spending about $120 million on ads for its Disney+ service alone, plus another $16 million for Hulu on Instagram. Disney joins several large companies pausing or slashing their ad spending with Facebook amid calls for a boycott over its handling of hate speech and divisive content. Disney is reportedly concerned specifically about Facebook's enforcement of its policies on objectionable content and whether it can prevent Disney ads from appearing along side it. Facebook earns about $70 billion in annual advertising revenue.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.