Facebook Ad Boycott Prolonged?... Zuckerberg-Civic Groups Meeting "Disappointing"

▲Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook [Image source=AP News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] Facebook, which has been criticized for not seriously addressing content that promotes hate, met with human rights organizations leading the advertising boycott but ended the meeting confirming only differences in stance. As a result, the advertising suspension against Facebook is expected to be prolonged.

On the 7th (local time), Bloomberg reported that Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook CEO, and Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook COO, held an online video conference for over an hour with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), Anti-Defamation League (ADL), Color of Change, Free Press, and others, but ultimately ended without any progress.

This meeting was arranged after major human rights organizations expressed their desire to communicate with Facebook last week, and CEO Zuckerberg accepted the request.

Derrick Johnson, president of NAACP, a leading African American civil rights organization in the U.S., expressed dissatisfaction, saying, "Facebook management avoided commitments to correct racism and misinformation, offering only insignificant proposals."

Johnson added, "They lack the cultural sensitivity to understand that Facebook is actually being used to cause harm. If not, they have chosen to profit from it."

Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of ADL, the largest Jewish civil rights organization in the U.S., stated, "We repeatedly delivered ten proposals to curb hate speech but received no results."

Previously, these organizations demanded ten policy changes from Facebook, including appointing a senior executive to establish equal rights, banning groups pursuing white supremacy, and preventing misinformation and violent conspiracy theories.

Jessica Gonz?lez, CEO of Free Press, said, "Zuckerberg and his colleagues did not give assurance that they would take action."

Rashad Robinson, CEO of Color of Change, harshly criticized the meeting as "disappointing."

Facebook released a statement after the meeting, saying, "This meeting was an opportunity to reaffirm our responsibility to fight hate," and "We are well aware that we will be judged by our actions, not words."

Facebook COO Sandberg said, "We will issue a final audit report by civil rights experts soon," adding, "This is not because of financial reasons or advertiser pressure, but because it is the right thing to do."

Meanwhile, it has been confirmed that about 1,000 advertisers, including major brands such as Verizon and Ford, have joined the Facebook advertising boycott so far.