Image by Google

Google is under fire this week, as numerous high-profile European companies withdraw or threaten to withdraw from the search engine’s lucrative ad business over concerns that their promotions are being placed alongside extremist, racist content.

Companies that have ditched Google, or might do so, include HSBC, the Royal Bank of Scotland, British telecom giant Vodafone and the European subsidiary of McDonald’s. Meanwhile, British Parliament member Yvette Cooper has alleged that Google is “profiting from hate.”

The ads earn Google, as well as the person or entity whose content they are placed next to, small amounts of money that can add up for very popular videos or articles. According to the Guardian, this arrangement could have landed extremists over $300,000 in revenue from unsuspecting corporations. Google uses a formula for ad placement that automatically slots promotions and content together. That has wound up in some cases putting spots from major brands next to David Duke’s hateful rants.

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

The company’s execs are planning to liaise with companies about the issue at an upcoming annual conference for European marketers. Google has not said yet what it will do to allay advertisers’ concerns, though it has promised to review ad placement procedures, try to tweak its own programs to avoid mismatches between ads and content, and reach out to companies about the best ways to make use of ad technology.

Contact Daniel J. Solomon at [email protected] or on Twitter @DanielJSolomon

The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. We’re near the end of our Passover Fundraising Drive, and we have a very ambitious goal of $127,000 by April 21.

This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on. Make a Passover gift today!

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Make a Passover Gift Today!

$90 $180

$360

Other amount