‘This is a moral question’: WFA calls for social media clean-up
Following similar calls in the UK, the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA) has today rallied brands around the world “to hold social media platforms to account” in the wake of failures to stop the spread of “dangerous” and “hateful” content.
The call, made during the body’s conference in Lisbon, comes less than a month after Facebook and Google-owned YouTube were lambasted for not moving quickly enough to halt video uploads of the Christchurch terror attack.
Other issues – involving paedophilic comments beneath innocent videos of children and the algorithmic promotion of self-harm content – have also blighted the social media platforms since the start of the year.
The WFA – which claims its members collectively represent 90% of the world’s marketing spend – said that while companies must decide their own approaches, the WFA is calling on its members and brands worldwide to put pressure on platforms to do more to prevent their services and algorithms from being hijacked by those with malicious intent.
The trade body added this was done in full acknowledgement that brands are the “funders of the online advertising system”. The WFA, which has 106 corporate members, told Mediatel it was aware that “many advertisers” had pulled spend in the wake of the New Zealand attacks, but is it otherwise difficult to ascertain which brands have made the move.
Earlier this month Facebook’s UK boss, Steve Hatch, said the scrutiny placed on his platform was “justified”, but added that Facebook would invest more in user safety and security this year than the entirety of its revenues the year the social media platform IPO’d.
Mediatel calculates that this would amount to around $10m – $14m per day.
Meanwhile, both Google and Facebook have taken reactive steps to help make their platforms safer for users, brands and society at large. This involves machine-learning coupled with human oversight – which already captures the majority of unsafe content before it is uploaded. Additionally, both businesses are working with NGOs, charities and the police to resolve threats.
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Despite these assurances, on Thursday ANZA chief executive Lindsay Mouat said: “This is not an issue of brand safety, this is a moral question to hold social media platforms to account – in the same way we do for traditional media.”
The call to action also reflects the fact that these are not challenges that can be addressed by one country alone but need global action, the WFA said, adding that improving the online ecosystem is a “top priority” for members.
47% of respondents to a WFA member barometer conducted this month of more than 200 senior marketers from over 100 brands representing $125bn in ad spend cited improving the online advertising ecosystem as the single biggest issue the marketing industry needed to address in 2019.
“Marketers must reflect on the extent and terms on which they fund these platforms,” said Stephan Loerke, CEO of the WFA.
“Conversely, the platforms must do more to assuage the growing number of advertiser concerns. WFA is committed to working with the platforms in a constructive manner in order to find solutions to these grave problems. For our shared goal must be to build an ecosystem that is sustainable and doesn’t undermine people, communities and society at large.”
Raja Rajamannar, the chief marketing and communications officer at Mastercard and new WFA President, added that the influence of online platforms in “shaping cultures and mobilising communities around the world is already significant and growing ever more so.”
“This means brands and platforms must assume a higher level of responsibility to ensure these online environments are forces for good, not conflict or violence,” he said.
“That begins with acknowledging flaws and quickly investing in lasting solutions. To drive change we need less debate and more action.”
Major brands have threatened similar punishments against social media platforms in the past. However, measurable results of their rhetoric are hard to find.
Unilever CMO Keith Weed said just over a year ago: “Unilever will not invest in platforms or environments that do not protect children or which create division in society and promote anger or hate. We will prioritise investing only in responsible platforms that are committed to creating a positive impact on society.”
However, despite repeated requests from Mediatel’s editor-at-large, Dominic Mills, to understand how this worked in action, the world’s second-largest advertiser gave no response.