AT&T has pulled all advertising from YouTube while the streaming service deals with issues regarding predatory comments being left on videos of children, according to CNBC. AT&T had reportedly only just started running ads on YouTube again after pulling them during a controversy in 2017.

Disney, Nestlé, and Fortnite maker Epic Games have also pulled ads from YouTube this week. The trend suggests that YouTube could be facing another “adpocalypse,” where inappropriate behavior by some users on the site leads to major advertisers backing out, sometimes for extended periods of time.

“Until Google can protect our brand from offensive content of any kind, we are removing all advertising from YouTube,” an AT&T spokesperson told CNBC.

Concerns about predatory comments started circulating earlier this week after a video highlighted how some videos featured time-stamped comments that sexualize children. The video pointed out that ads ran on many of these videos as well, and it called on advertisers to push back on YouTube.

YouTube has seemingly been in crisis mode all week trying to address the issue. The company says it’s restricted advertising and commenting on millions of videos, banned hundreds of channels, and adjusted its recommendation algorithm to limit the reach of videos that had predatory comments.



Posted: Feb 21, 2019 5:23 pm
Last Updated: Feb 21, 2019 5:24 pm
Related Forum: Media Forum

Source: https://www.theverge.com/2019/2/21/18235104/att-pulls-youtube-ads-child-predatory-comments