New Delhi (India), 31st March 2023: In response to demands from marketers to separate their marketing from controversial posts on Facebook and Instagram, Meta Platforms Inc. announced on Thursday that it is now implementing a long-promised system for advertisers to choose where their ads are shown.
The system provides advertisers with three risk categories from which they can choose their ad placements, the most conservative of which forbids placements above or below posts containing delicate material like images of weapons, sexual innuendo, and political discussions.
Additionally, Meta will give advertising measurement company Zefr a report that details the exact content that appeared next to Facebook advertisers’ ads and how it was categorised.
Marketers have long called for more control over where their ads appear online, claiming that major social media platforms do not do enough to stop ads from appearing next to offensive content such as hate speech, false news, and other offensive material.
The problem first came to light when thousands of companies joined a boycott of Facebook in the midst of anti-racism demonstrations in the US in July 2020.
A few months later, a deal was negotiated, and the business, now known as Meta, consented to create tools to “better manage advertising adjacency,” among other stipulations.
Samantha Stetson, Meta’s Vice President said that over time the tool will be refined and advertisers will have even more control over the placement of their ads. However, she cautioned about a change in price dynamic that could take place due to these changes.
