The #StopHateForProfit Boycott Holds

I’ve been covering the developing #StopHateForProfit movement, which called on advertisers to boycott Facebook in July or even longer, hoping the controversial social media platform would change its practices around hate speech, misinformation, disinformation, and political extremism.

In early June, I listed a number of publishers who were using Facebook ads. Then, about two weeks later (just over a week ago), I updated the list and added specifics, as it appeared more publishers were using Facebook ads than before.

Since then, pressure has increased on Facebook. A recent, blistering report blasting Facebook’s civil rights practices — which described the company’s “vexing and heartbreaking decisions” as “significant setbacks for civil rights” — have only added weight to the boycott.

Since July 1, the list of companies participating in #StopHateForProfit has more than doubled, from around 425 to more than 990, with some big names — Unilever, Coca-Cola, Verizon, GM, Levi’s,  lululemon, Target, Ford, Pfizer, Microsoft, Adidas, Starbucks, and my personal favorite, Red Vines — joining the boycott.

So far in scholarly publishing, the boycott is holding, with new relevant organizations signing onto the official boycott pledge. That’s the bottom line.

I’ve listed everyone again in the second list since I had to check everyone anyhow.

Stated Boycott Participants

• American Academy of Family Physicians — Not analyzed previously. No active ads.
• Annual Reviews
• Harvard Business Review Press — Not analyzed previously. No active ads.
• Research Square.
• University  of California Press
• University  of Toronto Press

Likely Boycott Participants, Still No Ads

The following organizations appeared to be supporting the #StopHateForProfit ad boycott discreetly but effectively, as of July 1. These are organizations advertising on Facebook in June, but which stopped as the boycott started. As of July 8, there were still no ads from these June advertisers on Facebook:

• Academy of Management
• AIP Publishing
• American Academy of Neurology
• American Academy of Pediatrics
• American Association for the Advancement of Science
• American Chemical Society
• American College of Cardiology
• American College of Chest Physicians
• American College of Physicians
• American Dental Association
• American Physiological Society
• American Psychological Association
• American Society of Clinical Oncology
• American Urological Association
• American Veterinary Medical Association
• American Water Works Association
• BMJ
• Cambridge University Press
• De Gruyter
• EBSCO
• Elsevier
• Emerald Publishing
• Endocrine Society
• Frontiers
• Harvard University Press
• IEEE and IEEE Xplore
• JAMA
• JBJS
• JMIR Publications
• Johns Hopkins University Press
• Karger Publishers
• Mary Ann Liebert
• McGraw-Hill
• MIT Press
• Modern Language Association
• NEJM and NEJM Knowledge+
• Oxford University Press
• PNAS
• Project MUSE
• ProQuest
• RSNA
• Royal Society of Chemistry
• SAGE Publishing
• Springer Nature
• Taylor & Francis
• Thieme
• Wiley
• Wolters Kluwer

Organizations Pulling Ads Prior, Expressing Support

Other organizations I’ve heard from weren’t included, as they stopped advertising on Facebook years ago, or I missed them in June and can no longer confirm they pulled ads in sync with the boycott. I’ve added this category for those raising their hands in this manner. If your organization fits into this category and isn’t listed, please contact me.

• American Mathematical Society
• Institute for Civil Engineering
• ResearchSquare, and American Journal Experts

It looks like the boycott — both explicit and implicit — is holding, even expanding. I’ll give another update this month at some point, when warranted.

If I’ve missed an organization or publication, and the list needs to be expanded or modified, please let me know.

Thanks.

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