Google Moves To Ban Far-Right Websites From Ad Platform Over Protest Coverage Violations

TOPLINE

Google is moving to ban two far-right websites, The Federalist and ZeroHedge, from generating revenue from its advertising platform after comments on articles about the Black Lives Matter protests violated Google’s policies on content related to race, according to a Tuesday NBC News report.

KEY FACTS

A Google spokesperson told NBC News that The Federalist and ZeroHedge violated strict publisher policies that “prohibit derogatory content that promotes hatred, intolerance, violence or discrimination based on race from monetizing.”

Google notified ZeroHedge of the policy violation last week and already banned the website from its platform, according to NBC News

The Federalist was also notified of its policy violations on Tuesday and will have three days to remedy its content before the ban goes into place. 

A Google spokesperson clarified to Adweek reporter Scott Nover that it was the sites’ comments sections and not the articles that were violating Google’s “dangerous and derogatory” policies.

The issue was brought to Google’s attention through research done by the Center for Countering Digital Hate, a British non-profit that identified 10 U.S. websites projected to make millions through Google Ads from allegedly racist articles about the protest.

In an effort to weed out fake news, Google has increased the strictness of its policies and banned a number of publishers since the 2016 election. 

key background

Both ZeroHedge and The Federalist have been known to propagate conspiratorial, evidence-free claims in the past. ZeroHedge, a right-wing market blogging site, has also been banned from advertising on Twitter and published an article claiming that the protests following George Floyd’s death were fake. The Federalist, a conservative online magazine, has published numerous articles about the protests, including one that claimed the media lied about looting and violence during the protests. 

further reading

“Google bans two websites from its ad platform over protest articles” (NBC News)

“Twitter reinstates Zero Hedge account saying it’s earlier suspension was ‘an error’” (The Verge)

“Is Zero Hedge a Russian Trojan Horse?” (New Republic)


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