1 00:00:00,208 --> 00:00:02,791 (upbeat music) 2 00:00:03,940 --> 00:00:06,140 - Facebook's facing a major ad boycott, 3 00:00:06,140 --> 00:00:08,860 and Unilever gets the ball rolling among big brands. 4 00:00:08,860 --> 00:00:10,807 I'm Jeff Beer, and this is Fast Company's 5 00:00:10,807 --> 00:00:12,330 "Brand Hit & Miss of the Week." 6 00:00:12,330 --> 00:00:15,550 This miss this week, and frankly most weeks, is Facebook. 7 00:00:15,550 --> 00:00:18,130 The social network is in the middle of a PR nightmare 8 00:00:18,130 --> 00:00:21,030 as major advertisers from Panagonia and The North Face 9 00:00:21,030 --> 00:00:23,840 to Honda, Ford, Levi's and Starbucks 10 00:00:23,840 --> 00:00:26,210 have joined the Stop Hate For Profit campaign, 11 00:00:26,210 --> 00:00:29,010 boycotting ads on the platform for the month of July. 12 00:00:29,010 --> 00:00:31,170 It's a coordinated response to the sheer amount 13 00:00:31,170 --> 00:00:34,080 of hate speech and divisive content on the platform, 14 00:00:34,080 --> 00:00:37,320 which began with civil rights groups such as the NAACP 15 00:00:37,320 --> 00:00:38,820 and the Anti-Defamation League. 16 00:00:38,820 --> 00:00:41,180 On Monday, in a nod to the impending boycott, 17 00:00:41,180 --> 00:00:43,650 Facebook announced it would seek an external audit 18 00:00:43,650 --> 00:00:45,480 for its content moderation systems. 19 00:00:45,480 --> 00:00:47,870 But the Stop Hate For Profit campaign responded, 20 00:00:47,870 --> 00:00:49,960 saying that none of Facebook's promised steps 21 00:00:49,960 --> 00:00:51,897 would, quote, "Make a significant dent 22 00:00:51,897 --> 00:00:54,607 "in the persistent hate and racism so prevalent 23 00:00:54,607 --> 00:00:57,420 "on the largest social media platform on the planet." 24 00:00:57,420 --> 00:00:59,557 Also, and with impeccable timing, 25 00:00:59,557 --> 00:01:01,990 "The Washington Post," this week, published a story 26 00:01:01,990 --> 00:01:05,010 that said Facebook had basically been altering its policy 27 00:01:05,010 --> 00:01:07,310 to make sure President Trump couldn't violate it, 28 00:01:07,310 --> 00:01:09,500 all the way back since 2015. 29 00:01:09,500 --> 00:01:10,333 Yikes! 30 00:01:10,333 --> 00:01:12,600 The report said the company has constrained its efforts 31 00:01:12,600 --> 00:01:14,570 against false and misleading news, 32 00:01:14,570 --> 00:01:17,950 adopted a policy explicitly allowing politicians to lie 33 00:01:17,950 --> 00:01:20,020 and even altered its newsfeed algorithm 34 00:01:20,020 --> 00:01:22,080 to neutralize claims that it was biased 35 00:01:22,080 --> 00:01:23,820 against conservative publishers, 36 00:01:23,820 --> 00:01:26,860 according to more than a dozen former and current employees 37 00:01:26,860 --> 00:01:30,370 and previously unreported documents obtained by the Post. 38 00:01:30,370 --> 00:01:33,520 This is all shown how much Facebook has ignored, 39 00:01:33,520 --> 00:01:36,010 denied and obfuscated its responsibilities 40 00:01:36,010 --> 00:01:37,650 as a communications company, 41 00:01:37,650 --> 00:01:40,830 all to the detriment of democracy and society at large. 42 00:01:40,830 --> 00:01:42,650 Which brings us to this week's hit, 43 00:01:42,650 --> 00:01:45,040 one of the world's biggest advertisers, Unilever. 44 00:01:45,040 --> 00:01:47,200 The parent company of brands like Ben & Jerry's, 45 00:01:47,200 --> 00:01:50,530 Dove, Ax and Lipton was the first big spender 46 00:01:50,530 --> 00:01:51,730 to join the boycott. 47 00:01:51,730 --> 00:01:54,330 Unilever joining seemed to instantly spark action 48 00:01:54,330 --> 00:01:55,650 among other major brands, 49 00:01:55,650 --> 00:01:56,860 either giving them permission 50 00:01:56,860 --> 00:01:58,660 or helping them find their own backbone 51 00:01:58,660 --> 00:01:59,930 to stand up for themselves. 52 00:01:59,930 --> 00:02:02,120 Look, all these advertisers combined 53 00:02:02,120 --> 00:02:03,640 only contribute single digits 54 00:02:03,640 --> 00:02:06,000 to Facebook's massive ad revenue. 55 00:02:06,000 --> 00:02:07,690 But their brands are popular, 56 00:02:07,690 --> 00:02:09,370 and so their voices are loud. 57 00:02:09,370 --> 00:02:11,100 Unilever also initially stood out 58 00:02:11,100 --> 00:02:13,950 for going beyond the original month of July boycott 59 00:02:13,950 --> 00:02:16,370 to say it was pausing all its ads on Facebook 60 00:02:17,224 --> 00:02:18,240 and Instagram until the end of the year. 61 00:02:18,240 --> 00:02:21,820 To have any impact on Mark Zuckerberg or Facebook 62 00:02:21,820 --> 00:02:24,340 will require loud, sustained pressure. 63 00:02:24,340 --> 00:02:25,990 Many companies have already cut spending 64 00:02:25,990 --> 00:02:28,370 through the end of the year, thanks to COVID-19, 65 00:02:28,370 --> 00:02:30,590 so extending the boycott beyond July 66 00:02:30,590 --> 00:02:32,100 should be an easy decision. 67 00:02:32,100 --> 00:02:34,660 For those considering slinking back come August 68 00:02:34,660 --> 00:02:36,060 or even the end of the year, 69 00:02:36,060 --> 00:02:38,340 do they seriously think hate speech on Facebook 70 00:02:38,340 --> 00:02:40,480 is gonna get any better between now and then, 71 00:02:40,480 --> 00:02:43,300 or November 3rd, the date of the Presidential election? 72 00:02:43,300 --> 00:02:44,990 The only thing that'll make this boycott 73 00:02:44,990 --> 00:02:47,440 more than a corporate feel-good vanity project 74 00:02:47,440 --> 00:02:48,820 is to make it indefinite 75 00:02:48,820 --> 00:02:51,060 and tie it to a specific list of demands 76 00:02:51,060 --> 00:02:53,400 around how the social network polices hate speech 77 00:02:53,400 --> 00:02:54,960 and other problematic posts, 78 00:02:54,960 --> 00:02:57,200 and brands will need to be vocal about that too. 79 00:02:57,200 --> 00:02:59,560 Here's hoping Unilever can lead on that as well. 80 00:02:59,560 --> 00:03:01,510 That's it for now, what are your picks?